New York Red Bulls head coach Sandro Schwarz knows that his team can still finish fourth and secure home field advantage in the first round of the playoffs but they will need to start producing results. The past three weeks have seen the team drop points to lesser opposition in Chicago, Sporting KC and Philadelphia. Now, Atlanta comes into Red Bull Arena with momentum after stealing a point from Inter Miami. Schwarz and the team know that they’ll have to fix the problems in order to continue their push.
“We have a big opportunity,” said Schwarz of the team’s last three home games. “For our club, for our team and for our supporters to bring the energy on Saturday. This is important, and I know for sure, we want to be in the best place. We want to have the best ranking in the table, of course, but the opportunity is on Saturday.”
The Red Bulls have had trouble solidifying wins in MLS league play since the injury to Emil Forsberg. The club hasn’t won a game since July 20th and suffered two stinging losses to Philadelphia and Chicago. The season, which has hinged on the team’s ability to grind out results, has seen that confidence waver to the point that fourth place has slipped through their fingers. Orlando City, tied on points, now sits about them and forced the club into a must-win situation on Saturday.
Atlanta won’t be easy to topple. Wins against Columbus and Charlotte are combined with a strong draw against Miami to give the away team confidence. They may be looking to next season, but United are not a team that can be overlooked so late in the campaign, even though they have yet to ever win at Red Bull Arena.
“We’re just taking it one game at a time,” said defender Dylan Nealis about playing Atlanta twice in the coming weeks. “Definitely the one at home we have to take advantage of. Then going down there, it’s a tough place to play. I think if we can take care of business at home this weekend, it’ll set us off on the right track when we head down there in a few weeks.”
Red Bulls will also be hoping for some reinforcements. The team is expected to miss leader and defender Sean Nealis, Wiki Carmona and Emil Forsberg for one more game. There is a possibility that Forsberg could play but Schwarz is keen on making sure his star player returns healthy and able to contribute as best as he can.
For Atlanta, it’s a late season surge. While they aren’t completely out of the playoff picture, their hope is to continue to play spoiler for some of the better teams above them. This Saturday’s fixture presents one of the better opportunities to do just that and snag their first win from New York in their home stadium.
“Now we are looking forward to the home game against Atlanta,” said Schwarz. “In our stadium, with our supporters and this is now what we have to prepare for.”
photo by Jordan Bank