photo by Matt Kremkau

New York Red Bulls are not the team of years past, as the club is not just a group of young or developing players. This off-season saw veteran Bundesliga striker Eric Maxime Choupo-Moting join the likes of Emil Forsberg and Alexander Hack to give RBNY something they haven’t had since before 2020: experience.

“I think always good to use the resources you have,” said midfielder Cameron Harper. “Being able to speak with Emil (Forsberg) and (Eric Maxime) Choupo-Moting and (Alexander) Hack, the guys who have been there and done that. They’ve had experience in big games. So anytime I can get information off of them or just pick their brain, it’s always good.”

A player like Harper, now 23 years-old, may still be young, but he himself has been in some of the team’s most important games. He played in every game during last season’s MLS Cup Final run and has been a part of key Leagues Cup games in recent years. While he may still look at the veterans he described for information, he himself has a knowledge of MLS that few players have at his age.

Harper isn’t the only one who has gained tremendous experience. Head coach Sandro Schwarz is entering his second season with Red Bulls and implementation of his style of play was on display in week one. While the team didn’t get a goal, the patterns of play and how they will defend was apparent. One of the players he will rely on is Lewis Morgan, the versatile forward who will be an important connection point for some of the more veteran players.

“He’s a very important player on the field,” said Schwarz about Morgan. “Also, how he leads the team in every training session to communicate, to push the guys. He’s a great guy in the locker room. At the end, for sure, we need our offensive players to create numbers. Individual numbers, assists with the last pass, final pass with then hopefully scoring goals.”

Goal scoring has been an issue for Red Bull forwards in recent years. Since the departure of Bradley Wright-Phillips, it has been a revolving door of strikers that have been unable to find their place on the team. Choupo-Moting is the latest player to attempt that feat and support from forwards like Morgan will be essential towards making that happen.

Saturday night will also be a historic night as Red Bulls open the 2025 season in the newly named Sports Illustrated Stadium. While many may still look upon it as Red Bull Arena, the new name and new team dynamic represents a fresh start with high expectations.

“The next big chance is our home opener,” said Schwarz about Saturday night’s event. “It’s great now to have this feeling with our supporters in our stadium to start now, Saturday. We are very, very excited now to come together after a long time.”

Nashville SC will be the opponents on Saturday night. Last week, Nashville were unable to score against New England Revolution but were defensively stout and held the contest to a goal-less draw. New York is hoping to score their first of the season and start life at Sports Illustrated Stadium with a win.

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