Queens, N.Y. – For the first time in this competition, the New York City Football Club II and the New York Red Bulls II squared off to decide who would move on to the next round of the US Open Cup. For the first time in knockout play, City were able to defeat Red Bull with a messy 4-2 win on a raw and stormy evening at Belson Stadium in Queen, making conditions more favorable for ducks than soccer players. Nevertheless, as yet another chapter of the storied Hudson River Derby began, both teams braved the elements.
Six minutes into the match, the visiting Red Bulls struck. The ball found Mohommed Sofo in the center of the box, who slid it under NYCFC II keeper Tomas Romero. Just like that, Red Bulls II grabbed the early lead. But that lead didn’t last.
In the 22nd minute, Jonathan Jimenez received an excellent through ball after Alexander Hauschild headed it down. He was alone on a break, with only the Red Bulls II keeper standing between him and the goal, and he quickly equalized the match. Just a few minutes later, in the 38th minute, Jonathan Jimenez once again found himself on a break with just him and the keeper to beat and quickly blew it past him to take the lead.
Red Bulls II quickly responded by nearly tying the match, but Aidan O’Connor’s shot slammed off the post. However, just before the half ended, on a broken play, Taylor Calleira kept the ball in play and got it over to an open Malachi Jones, who wasted no time in chipping the ball over a helpless Dallas Odle and watched the ball bounce into the net, putting the end of a miserable first half for Ibrahim Sekegya’s boys.
Whatever coach Sekagya spoke about during halftime worked immediately. Red Bulls II responded with renewed determination, which paid off with Serge Ngoma’s goal in the 47th minute after taking a brilliant pass from Roald Mitchell to bring the visitors back within one.
Red Bulls II looked like a much different team in the second half. Ngoma led the charge to bring his team back into the match. In the 63rd minute, he drew a foul in the box by Chris Tiao, giving the Red Bulls II a penalty and a chance to equalize the match. However, NYCFC II’s goalkeeper Romero was up to the task, saving Julian Hall’s penalty shot and denying the Red Bulls a chance they had worked hard for.
Red Bulls II had another chance to even the match in the header from Rolad Mitchell, who glanced off Romero’s hand and bounced off an NYCFC II defender, denying yet another opportunity for the visitors.
In the 86th minute, Juan Gutierrez was called for a handball in the box, which Jimenez converted the penalty kick shortly after, giving him a hat trick and putting an emphatic end to New York Red Bulls II’s attempted comeback and their participation in this season’s tournament.
New York City FC II now await a third round opponent which should be discovered after Wednesday’s remaining Open Cup games. For Red Bulls II it is back to MLS Next Pro where there next game will be next Wednesday back at Belson against NYCFC II in league play.
Starting XI:
New York City FC II: Tomas Romero, Piero Elias (Stevo Bednarsky 80′), Alexander Hauschild, Chris Tiao, Agustin Ojeda, Jake Rozhansky, Christian McFarlane (Matthew Leong 88′), Malachi Jones, Jonathan Jimenez, Taylor Callheira
New York Red Bulls II: Dallas Odle, Jair Collahuazo (Omar Valencia 54′), Aidan O’Connor, Juan Gutierrez, Copland Berkley, Dylan Sullivan, Ronald Donkor, Julian Hall, Mohammed Sofo, Serge Ngoma (Steven Sserwadda 64′), Roald Mitchell (Frank Ssebufu 80′)
Scoring Summary:
6′ – New York Red Bulls II – Mohammed Sofo – Unassisted
22′ – New York City FC II – Jonathan Jimenenz, assisted by Alexander Hauschild
38′ – New York City FC II – Jonathan Jimenez, assisted by Jake Rozhansky
45′ – New York City FC II – Malachi Jones, assisted by Taylor Calleira
47′ – New York Red Bulls II – Serge Ngoma, assisted by Rolad Mitchell
87′ – New York City FC II – Jonathan Jimenez, converted penalty kick
Disciplinary Summary:
86′ – New York Red Bulls II – Juan Gutierrez – Yellow Card – Hand Ball