New York City FC Head Coach Domènec Torrent has made two changes to his lineup for his first Hudson River Derby.
Maxime Chanot and Rodney Wallace both returned to the XI for this 11th MLS meeting with City’s local rivals.
Chanot has been working his way back from a lengthy layoff, while Wallace returned from the FIFA World Cup last week and is straight back into the team.
Jo Inge Berget misses out, while Sebastien Ibeagha drops to the bench where he’s joined by Ronald Matarrita who has returned from the injury which kept him out of the World Cup.
David Villa’s injury sustained against Toronto last time in the Bronx keeps him out of contention, meaning it’s one of Maxi Moralez, Ismael Tajouri-Shradi or Rodney Wallace leading the line for the Boys in Blue.
In midfield, Alex Ring, Jesus Medina and Ebenezer Ofori are charged with dominating possession for the home team, ahead of Chanot and Alexander Callens, who resume their long-stading partnership, while Anton Tinnerholm and Ben Sweat will provide the width from the full-back positions.
Jonathan Lewis and Tommy McNamara are further attacking options, should Dome need them at any stage vs. one of Major League Soccer’s most in-form teams.
Watch the game live on FS1 or listen live at NYCFC.com/Radio.
NYCFC XI: Johnson, Tinnerholm, Chanot, Callens, Sweat, Ring, Ofori, Medina, Tajouri-Shradi, Wallace, Moralez
Subs: Stuver, Matarrita, Ibeagha, Abdul-Salaam, Awuah, McNamara, Lewis
Key Stats
- The Cityzens are 2W-2L at Yankee Stadium against the Red Bulls in MLS play. They have won their last two home games against them, outscoring their rivals 5-2 in the process (was outscored 10-1 in the first two games).
- New York City FC is unbeaten in their last 10 MLS home matches (7W-3D), scoring multiple goals in eight of the 10 games. It is one short of the franchise record for longest home unbeaten streak.
- The Red Bulls have won seven of their last 10 games in league play (1L-2D), conceding just 0.8 goals per match.
- NYCFC is averaging 1.9 goals per 90 when David Villa is off the field in 2018. They averaged 1.3 per 90 without him in league play from 2015 to 2017.
- Bradley Wright-Phillips is averaging a goal every 75.8 minutes against NYCFC, the second- best average of any player with 3+ goals in league play against the Cityzens.
- NYCFC outshot Chicago by 15 (20 to 5) in their 3-2 loss last weekend. The +15 shot margin is the most NYCFC has had in an MLS regular season loss in franchise history.
- Luis Robles had eight saves, including one penalty save, in his clean sheet against Toronto. This is the second time he has done so against Toronto FC (May 2016). Since the start of 2010, there have only been three other instances of an MLS player having 7+ saves (including a penalty save) and keeping a clean sheet in a regular season game.
- Maxi Morález had seven key passes against Chicago, his second time having 7+ key passes this season and his third in regular season play. David Villa (seven against Minnesota in June 2017) is the only other City player to have 7+ key passes in a game.
- The Red Bulls have yet to concede a goal when Connor Lade, Tim Parker, Aaron Long, and Kemar Lawrence are on the field together (196 minutes this season). They have conceded 1.1 goals per 90 in the 1,358 minutes that at least one of the four have been missing this season.
- The Red Bulls have scored nine headed goals so far this year, the most in the league. City have conceded eight headed goals this year, the most in the league.
