The New York Red Bulls are going to honor their goalkeeper and captain, Luis Robles, with an in-arena banner to acknowledge his starts record. He deserves every second of it.
The New York Red Bulls are in the news for a plethora of reasons this week. That is a great thing. It is always nice when a team gets some recognition and people talking about them.
The Red Bulls are not only making news for beating an amazing Atlanta United team in Atlanta last weekend, but they are also the center of attention for all the transfer news surrounding Jesse Marsch and Tyler Adams. With their potential moves to Bundesliga, the club is very much stealing the headlines.
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However, the Red Bulls have some other news going into their home matchup against the Philadelphia Union on Saturday.
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This news is much more simple but nostalgic and celebratory: the team officially announced that Luis Robles will get a banner honoring his 183-straight match streak. The ceremony will take place during warm-ups and it is a moment that the everpresent goalkeeper duly deserves.
Although it is a shame the streak had to come to an end due to the knee injury that kept him out of action in Atlanta, it is an immensely impressive achievement. Now that it is officially over, then, it is time to admire it, which is what the club is doing on Saturday.
Robles is not underrated per-say, but a lot of what he has done has gone under the radar. The Red Bulls are stacked with stars and big names. They always have been. They deserve the spotlight too. However, Robles has been with the club for a long time and has done it right. Aside from his raw talent and ability to play well on some of the biggest stages, his value is now measured in other ways.
The Red Bulls, since Robles’ streak started in 2012, have not needed to worry about a goalkeeper. He has been healthy and reliable. Even though the Red Bulls have never won an MLS Cup in that span of his streak, he still stayed through it all. That speaks for itself.
New York is likely to start Ryan Meara in-goal again for the second straight week with Robles is still battling his injury. But the New York Red Bulls are destined and good enough to make club history this year. Nevertheless, I am thrilled they still understand the importance of Robles as he went on to make league history.
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183 consecutive, complete games might be the number. But the gratitude that the Red Bull fans and club should have towards Robles cannot be measured.