Different day but the song remains the same and no, we aren’t talking about the legendary Led Zeppelin concert film.
The Red Bulls are without a game winning goal going into MLS Match Week 6 as they travel to take on Eastern Conference foes Orlando City Soccer Club on Sunday. Currently, both teams sit right in the middle of a congested conference with New York in fourth (2-2-1) and Orlando in fifth (2-1-0). With both RBNY and OCSC having come off losses, they will fight tooth and nail for three points.
New York lead the series between the two teams, posting an all-time record of 3-1-1 and outscoring Orlando 10-8. At home, Orlando has managed a 0-1-1 record which, considering the important role home support tends to play in victories, is unusual. Yet, Orlando will look to break the trend and notch their first home win against RBNY.
Orlando returns home on Sunday, coming off of the 2-0 away defeat at the hands of the Columbus Crew. The team has played two less games than the Red Bulls, yet they look a more convincing team at times.
Captain and star playmaker Ricardo Kaka is still grappling with a hamstring injury he sustained in OCSC’s win against New York City Football Club on March 5th. The Brazilian sensation has been definitively ruled out for this weekend’s game against the Red Bulls and is not slated to return until the end of the month.
Despite this, Orlando has considerable attacking threat. Winger Matias Perez Garcia has become an increasingly important part of Orlando’s plans since joining the club in the summer of 2016. Giles Barnes has taken Kaka’s spot on the left wing in the wake of Kaka’s injury, notching one assist so far. With the recent inking of midfielder Luis Gil on loan from Queretaro, Orlando gains another key piece to direct traffic in the middle of the park. Orlando’s crown jewel is the two forwards lining up in the 4-4-2; Carlos Rivas and Cyle Larin. With three goals in his first three games, Larin is deadly and New York will look to limit OCSC’s service to him.
A tale of two forwards is indeed the motto for this match as it will prove to be a showdown between Larin and RBNY star Bradley Wright-Phillips. Larin has notched four goals against the Red Bulls while Wright-Phillips has scored three against OCSC in all regular season meetings between both sides. They have been two of the best forward in the MLS in recent years and this matchup should prove to be exciting.
Wright-Phillips and New York, coming off of a humiliating 4-1 defeat to the Houston Dynamo, travel to Orlando with a chip on their shoulder; an “us against the world” mentality. Although Wright-Phillips’ two team leading goals are commendable, neither he nor the rest of the Red Bulls have yet to score a game winning goal which is worrisome going into Week 6.
Captain Sacha Kljestan (currently leading the team with two assists), will look to link up with BWP and Fredrik Gulbrandsen, who returns Sunday following a precautionary absence from last week’s Dynamo disaster. Will the two forwards finally have that give-and-go interplay manager Jesse Marsch has hoped for?
Also returning is central defender Aurelien Collin who sustained a leg injury in Houston, and right back Connor Lade who suffered a minor knock in training during the week. Forward Gonzalo Veron is out for the forseeable future, with the team reporting he has flown to Argentina to see a doctor concerning his recurring hamstring issue while winger Mike Grella is out until about the end of the month following persistent knee pain.
The Red Bull defense has looked leaky and the attack is lifeless. Will they get going? Undoubtedly so and, when they do, they will be unstoppable. But the question is when will they start that streak? Could it be Sunday?
This is an Eastern Conference game that will be as hot as the Florida weather.
The Red Bulls will play their second of two back-to-back away games on Sunday before returning home to play arch-rivals D.C. United on Saturday, April 15th.
New York Red Bulls
Orlando City
