Red Bull New York drop their second game in a row following the World Cup break, this time a 2-0 loss to Charlotte FC in front of their fans at Sports Illustrated Stadium on Saturday night. Two goals early in the first half from Pep Biel and Ashley Westwood put Michael Bradley’s men in a hole that they were never able to climb out of, despite their best efforts.
It was a similar line-up for New York, other than a defensive change which saw Julian Bazan step in for Jakheele Marshall-Rutty. the club failed to grab the momentum early as Biel took a shot on the counter following a failed attempt from Cade Cowell. The goal came quickly but the follow-up felt even quicker as just five minutes later the lead was doubled by Ashley Westwood with an assist from Kerwin Vargas.
Red Bull defense was put into the spotlight with their early mishaps but the club did do their best to recover as quickly as possible. Attempts from Cowell, Emil Forsberg and Adri Mehmeti didn’t produce the finishing product that the club desperately needed. As half time approached, Bradley’s team stayed composed with the hopes of climbing back into the game in the second half.
The majority of the final 45 minutes saw Red Bull control the game. Charlotte did their best to counter at moments but a majority of the remaining contest saw possession from Red Bull with opportunities coming as the game wore on. The clearest chance came in the 54th minute when captain Forsberg hit the post, adding to the club’s frustration. Those emotions boiled over when Mehmeti received his second yellow card, sending him off and ending the chances for a comeback.
The loss sees New York fall to eighth place in the Eastern Conference. The excitement after the restart of the season has seemingly faded with two consecutive losses. Next will be an all-important game against Orlando City, where their footing in the Eastern conference hangs precariously in danger as we enter the third portion of the season.
STARTING XI:
Red Bull New York: Horvath; Nealis (70′ Marshall-Rutty), Che, Bazan, Dos Santos (84′ Valencia), Donkor, Mehmeti, Forsberg (70′ Jimenez), Cowell (70′ Sofo), Hall, Ruvalcaba (84′ Rojas)
Charlotte FC: Kahlina; Byrne, Agyemang, Kessler, Toffolo (61′ Cleary), de la Torre (71′ Diani), Westwood, Biel (82′ Bronico), Vargas, Toklomati (82′ Goodwin), Abada (71′ Smalls)
SCORING SUMMARY:
7′ (Charlotte FC) Pep Biel (7) assisted by Liel Abada
12′ (Charlotte FC) Ashley Westwood (2) assisted by Kerwin Vargas & Idan Toklomati
DISCIPLINE:
48′ (Charlotte FC) Liel Abada – YELLOW CARD
57′ (Red Bull New York) Jorge Ruvalcaba – YELLOW CARD
77′ (Red Bull New York) Adri Mehmeti – YELLOW CARD
85′ (Red Bull New York) Omar Valencia – YELLOW CARD
90′ (Red Bull New York) Justin Che – YELLOW CARD
90′ (Red Bull New York) Adri Mehmeti – RED CARD
photo from Matt Kremkau