NYCFC 1-New York Red Bulls 1
The battle at the top of Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference on Wednesday night as New York City FC played the New York Red Bulls to a 1-1 draw. The latest edition of the Hudson River Derby proved to be just as emotionally and physically taxing as the previous editions for those on and off of the pitch.
Red Bulls seemed to have the upper hand heading into the final forty-five after Bradley Wright-Phillips finished off a pass from Daniel Royer to make it 1-0. That coupled with Eloi Amogat being sent off in the 40th minute made it feel as if New York would be red once again.
But NYCFC made one of their two shots on goal count during the second half with David Villa hitting home the equalizer in the 52nd minute. The goal was Villa’s tenth of the season.
The Red Bulls would gain an even greater advantage on the pitch in the 72nd minute when Ebenezer Ofori was sent off for a challenge on Wright-Phillips. Although they had the 11-9 man advantage it wasn’t enough to secure the full three points. Credit to NYCFC goalkeeper Sean Johnson for facing considerable pressure during the match and keeping his side organized enough to earn the result.
With the draw, the two sides retain their spots in the Eastern Conference with the Red Bulls (15-6-4, 49 points) in second and NYCFC in third (14-6-6, 48 points).
Please enjoy some of our photos from the match courtesy of photographer Joseph Misseri. You can find him on Twitter @JM8999 and enjoy all of his photos from the 2018 season on SmugMug.
NYCFC
