New York City FC Match Preview and Prediction: New York Red Bulls

New York City FC looks to extend their winning streak to a season-high four matches in this season’s final iteration of the Hudson River Derby.

Where: Red Bull Arena – Harrison, New Jersey

When: Friday, 8/25 at 7:00 pm ET

How to Watch: ESPN, ESPN Deportes, WatchESPN

ORLANDO, FL – MARCH 05: Jack Harrison (Photo by Alex Menendez/Getty Images) /

Match Overview:

Currently on a three-match winning streak, New York City FC comes into the last iteration of the Hudson River Derby on a hot streak, winning four of their last five, including a 3-2 victory over the New York Red Bulls during that stretch.

Striker David Villa has been especially hot the past few weeks, accounting for six of NYCFC’s nine goals over their last five games played. The Boys in Blue have also played especially well on the road this season, notching a league-best five victories away from Yankee Stadium.

Despite losing their last match to the Portland Timbers, the Red Bulls are in prime form coming into the final leg of the Hudson River Derby. The Jersey side has won five of their last seven MLS matches and own an excellent 8-2-2 home record this season.

The Red Bulls have been especially dominant at home as of late, as their record would indicate. The Red Bulls have outscored opponents by a 12-3 margin over their last three matches at Red Bull Arena.

HARRISON, NJ – APRIL 15: dd99 reacts after he missed his shot in the first half against the D.C. United at Red Bull Arena on April 15, 2017 in Harrison, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

Three Keys to the Match:

Erase Bradley Wright-Phillips: I sound like a broken record at this point, but it can’t be stressed enough that Bradley Wright-Phillips has to be erased from the match. Wright-Phillips is a notorious NYCFC killer, logging ten goals in his nine career matches against the Boys in Blue. The England international looks primed to add to his tally Friday night and it’ll be a tall order to make him a non-factor, but the Cityzens must find a way to neutralize Wright-Phillips if they want to come away with points.
Feed David Villa: David Villa has been in prime scoring form the past six weeks and has been the catalyst behind NYCFC’s recent success. He may not record another hat-trick like his last outing against the Red Bulls, but Villa has been scoring in bunches and will definitely put the ball in the back of the net if given enough opportunities.
Ride the Line: The Red Bulls play a high defensive line and have utilized the offsides trap to great effect this season. The Boys in Blue were caught offsides eight times in their last game against their cross-river rivals. NYCFC must time their runs to perfection this weekend if they hope to earn all three points Friday night.

BRIDGEVIEW, IL – MARCH 06: Mikey Lopez (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

Player to Watch: Mikey Lopez

Midfield stalwart Yangel Herrera will not be on the pitch Friday night due to a yellow card accumulation suspension, leaving a hole in the midfield that needs to be filled. Initial reports coming out of NYCFC training is that Mikey Lopez is the most likely candidate to take Herrera’s spot after a strong performance against the New England Revolution last week.

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Lopez hasn’t seen much action this season outside of the occasional late-game substitution, but the Texas native has the right skill set to adequately replace Herrera. Lopez is a good distributor of the ball, shows good work rate on the field, and is defensively sound enough to force opposing midfielders into mistakes.

Official Overview: Jair Marrufo

Jair Marrufo is a 16-year veteran referee who will officiate his 220th career MLS match Friday night. Marrufo has officiated several international tournaments throughout his career and has a good reputation both in the MLS and CONCACAF as a whole.

While he averages 21 total fouls called per game, Marrufo isn’t as harsh as other referees in the MLS. Marrufo has only given out 24 yellow cards as well as a single red card in the eight games he’s refereed this season. There may be several fouls called Friday night considering the nature of this rivalry, but there should be a certain flow to the match and cards will only be given out if there’s something especially egregious.

ATLANTA, GA – MARCH 05: Members of the New York Red Bulls celebrate after scoring the go-ahead goal during the game against Atlanta United at Bobby Dodd Stadium on March 5, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images) /

Prediction: NY Red Bulls 2 – NYCFC 1

All good things must come to an end. Red Bull Arena has been a house of horrors for NYCFC ever since the club’s inception and despite coming away with a win at the Arena earlier this season, the Boys in Blue are playing a completely different Red Bulls side from what they saw earlier this year.

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It’ll be a hard-fought match between the two clubs, but the home side will ultimately come away with the victory thanks to a Wright-Phillips brace and pull even with the Chicago Fire in the Eastern Conference.

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