“It’s a big game for both teams – when you get to this stage of the season, every point and every win is really important.”
Those were the sentiments of New York City FC Head Coach Patrick Vieira on the eve of one of the biggest games of the Regular Season.
Going into this showdown in Chi-town, NYCFC are four points ahead of their next opponents and three clear of Atlanta United.
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With the second seeding and the automatic bye to the Conference semifinals on the line and with three games to go, it’s a fascinating encounter that lies before us.
For Vieira, it’s one of the toughest assignments of the season but it’s the kind of game that excites both the Frenchman and his squad.
Vieira told NYCFC.com: “We’re expecting a really tough game – you only have to look at the way Chicago played in San Jose and the numbers of chances they created but, overall, how well they play as a team.
“This is a team who are well organized, have a lot of experience and quality as a team and individually.
“This is one of the toughest game we are playing but we’re really looking forward to the game as well because this is the type of game we want to play as a team.”
NYCFC head into this one on the crest of a wave after dominating Montreal at the Saputo Stadium on Wednesday night.
Although the Boys in Blue only ended ran out 1-0 victors, the result could and should have been much more emphatic.
Failure to finish off good chances was the only element of the game that disappointed the NYCFC boss and he’s called upon his players to be more ruthless at Toyota Park on Saturday night.
“This game will mean a lot on the table and for what we want to achieve this season,” Vieira reflected.
“If you look at the way we played against Montreal, I was really pleased with the way we played as a team.
“We played some really good football and defended well when we had to.
“The thing we need to improve is to try to take as many chances as we can – when you play away from home, it’s not every day you’re going to create a lot of chances so we need to take them and that would be good for us.”
