New York City FC advance to the quarterfinals of the Leagues Cup following a 2-1 win over Tigres at Red Bull Arena on Tuesday night. Goals from club legend Maxi Moralez and Santiago Rodriguez is enough to top the Mexican juggernaut, making them the second Liga MX team that City have beaten in this competition.
Both teams entered the first half with intentions of scoring early. An open game saw opportunities for both sides but it wasn’t until the 18th minute that the scoring began. A dangerous free kick for Tigres found the head of defender Guido Pizarro who buried his chance and put the visitors ahead. That lead only lasted two minutes as the 37 year-old Argentine Moralez equalized after running into the box and burying a chance to the far corner. Both teams continued to push but found little in the way of offense for the remainder of the half.
The second half is where City opened up more, taking the game to Tigres. Their pressure resulted in the game-winning effort from Rodriguez as Moralez was involved again with the assist. From there City didn’t sit back and absorb pressure. Instead they continued to push the game, bringing on Mounsef Bakrar and Julian Fernandez to press for the third goal. Misses from Rodriguez and Wolf put the pressure on but Tigres weren’t able to find the equalizer.
It is City’s first win in regulation time and the most impressive they’ve had in the competition. The win means they will play Columbus Crew on Saturday, and it also removes another Mexican powerhouse from the tournament.
STARTING XI:
New York City FC: Freese; Gray, Martins, Tanasijevic (72′ Haak), McFarlane, Parks, Sands, Wolf, Moralez (85′ Fernandez), Rodriguez, Martinez (85′ Bakrar)
Tigres: Guzman; Aquino (73′ Gignac), Pizarro, Reyes (38′ Henrique), Angulo, Gorriaran, Carioca, Flores, Vigon (61′ Brunetta), Cordova (62′ Lainez), Ibanez
SCORING SUMMARY:
18′ (Tigres) Guido Pizarro assisted by Rafael Carioca
20′ (NYCFC) Maxi Moralez unassisted
65′ (NYCFC) Santiago Rodriguez assisted by Maxi Moralez
DISCIPLINE:
36′ (NYCFC) Keaton Parks – YELLOW CARD
58′ (NYCFC) Christian McFarlane – YELLOW CARD
82′ (NYCFC) Tayvon Gray – YELLOW CARD
83′ (NYCFC) Santiago Rodriguez – YELLOW CARD
photo by Jordan Bank