Red Bulls Finishing Off Leagues Cup Group Stage Against FC Juarez

The New York Red Bulls return home to Sports Illustrated Stadium as they finish off their group stage in the Leagues Cup against FC Juarez. For these past two games, the Red Bulls have looked better in the run of play and have gotten four out of six points with a big win over Chivas de Guadalajara and a draw in a shootout loss to Monterrey. Earning a big result to find a way to advance into the Quarterfinals is a big task.

FC Juarez has had a very strong showing in the Leagues Cup with five different goal scorers. Madson has scored two goals in their first match against Charlotte FC in a four goals to one victory. While this is one club from Liga MX that rarely gets talked about, they have quickly made a statement in this edition of Leagues Cup that they are taking this tournament seriously, while some of the other clubs haven’t.

“Yeah, it’s a good team. What we have seen now the last two games in Leagues cup, and then the first games in their league, it’s they are playing with a lot of intensity against the ball. And then they have quality, clear structure in their build up. So good players, especially with the ball, the individual quality. So, it’s a good team, what we have seen and we need all the energy from our side to bring the best performance and hopefully then to get the result.” said Sandro Schwarz

The Red Bulls have done well in these past two games. While both Emil Forsberg and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting looked refreshed coming off the bench as super subs in the first game against Guadalajara, playing against Monterrey tested their mettle. They looked hungry and stayed positive, concentrating on the defensive side of the ball, and when they took advantage of a situation, the ball was in the back of the net.

“Yeah, I feel like the last two performances have been good, but it’s, like I said a few times before, it’s about the consistency. I think, I think we’ve had a lot of periods like this also before in the season, and then we haven’t managed to keep it consistent. So, I think that’s the key, and of course, when the performances are better then, of course, the confidence rises in the group, but, like I said, I think we need to be consistent and keep up those performances tomorrow as well.” said Noah Eile

While they did have a moment of poor judgment on defending a shot, and not getting the rebound cleared, the rest of the match, they defended well, and a great moment as we saw goalkeeper Carlos Coronel make a big save, and when the rebound shot came Noah Eile rushed in to make that huge block to keep the match leveled at one.

There are certain parameters that the Red Bulls need to find a way to get into the quarterfinals. Not just getting a win, but scoring multiple goals while not allowing any. If they get the regulation win, that is one half of the battle. They are currently in 10th place with four points. They need several clubs to earn a regulation loss to overtake one of the last two positions and or to hope for a Draw and dropping of the second point in the shootout. The Red Bulls are behind the eight ball.

The number one reason to be in this Leagues Cup for the Red Bulls is to get their confidence back. Once they restart their season and finish off the final stretch, the hope is to put themselves back into a playoff position. It’s looking like they are getting back to that, but once again, their schedule is still daunting as they must get as many points as possible to return above the playoff line.