The New York Red Bulls head to Orlando to play their second MLS road match of the young season. The will Sacha Klijestan collision is here.
Sacha Klijestan is the old New York Red Bulls captain that all supporters different and alike know about. The American midfielder is an MLS veteran. But before landing in Florida as part of an offseason trade with Orlando City, he donned the Red Bulls red and white for three seasons.
He ended up being traded for a player and cash, but was able to cement his name on the list of team captains to be traded. The Red Bulls, however, do not show any signs of missing Klijestan. Their depth is obvious and everyone is contributing.
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When the Red Bulls went to Real Salt Lake to play another old foe in Mike Petke, his now-replacement, Jesse Marsch, mentioned how his opponent being the Red Bulls did not matter. Does the same sentiment reign here.
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Well, perhaps. Klijestan does want to win this one. Desperately. He spoke to reporters earlier this week:
"“I want to get our first win and even better if it can come against my former team. It will be fun to see the guys again. I spent a few good years there and have some really good relationships with those guys so you always want to win against your friends and your brothers. I want to win this game very badly.”"
That speaks volumes. It shows it’ll be a competitive match. No hard feelings from his end. He just wants to beat his old team. It does not help that his new team, Orlando City SC, still remains winless on the season. Orlando has the benefit of another home match, but RBNY are coming off a flawless performance against Minnesota United. You would be somewhat foolish to bet against them.
Can Sacha get redemption against his ‘friends and brothers’? The answer is unknown. The match will air on Twitter and falls in the Saturday afternoon slot at 1:00 PM Eastern Time. Anyone on Twitter can watch, which only hypes up the storyline even more.
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The Red Bulls do not need any more incentive to keep winning. But in facing Klijestan, who openly wants to beat them, they have all the more reason to steal a rare road three points. An old foe is always an interesting opponent. For the New York Red Bulls, that interest sees them on a direct collision course.