New York City FC: Patrick Vieira right to stick to his guns

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - April 11: Patrick Vieira, head coach of New York City FC on the sideline during the New York City FC Vs Real Salt Lake regular season MLS game at Yankee Stadium on April 11, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - April 11: Patrick Vieira, head coach of New York City FC on the sideline during the New York City FC Vs Real Salt Lake regular season MLS game at Yankee Stadium on April 11, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images) /
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New York City FC’s battering at the feet of the Red Bulls has people asking questions, but Patrick Vieira is right to give such a simple answer.

From a New York City FC standpoint, it’s never easy to get slapped across New Jersey by the New York Red Bulls, especially given the fiery start to the season by the former and the lackluster start by the latter.

But beyond that, the amount of competitive players on both teams would seem to hint that, barring something bizarre, it will at the very least be a match with a lot to watch for on both sides.

I mean, just look at what happened when New York City FC visited Atlanta – the best team in MLS, arguably. It was a match of utter quality. It was tantalizing, back and forth, with both teams matching their opponent punch for punch.

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That’s why the Hudson River Derby was so shocking. There was no counter punch from the visitors. Just a feeble whimper. And fans want answers.

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Thankfully (this time, at least), Patrick Vieira comes from the Arsene Wenger school of thought, which is to change nothing until it’s unmistakably a problem, and even then, you should probably get a second opinion.

The thing is, while this loss was hard to stomach, it was in fact one loss. Prior to that match, the sky blues had successfully knocked FC Dallas out of the ‘undefeated’ category in the Bronx by a score of 3-1.

And yes, they fell victim to a resurgent Portland Timbers in Portland before that, but on the whole, this season has shown exactly what this team can do, which is, to paraphrase Vieira’s assessment, ‘compete with the best of them.’

They will continue to do that all year. There may be a slip-up or two along the way, but seriously, who doesn’t slip? Every team does, whether we like it or not. There should be no panic tactical changes for New York City FC. They need Ismael Tajouri back, that much is certain, but beyond that, they have so many weapons, and while some aren’t firing at the moment, they will fire again.

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There is no need to jump the gun and try to preemptively solve a problem that hasn’t even been fully diagnosed yet. Let the talent of this team do its thing and go from there. This is absolutely the right decision, without a doubt.