New York Red Bulls Vs Columbus Crew: The Chris Armas dream

When Chris Armas arrived in New Jersey, he would have envisaged his New York Red Bulls playing something like they did in their demolition of the Columbus Crew in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. This was the Armas dream.

When Chris Armas arrived in New Jersey, there was a worry that a clash of styles could cause the New York Red Bulls strife.

Jesse Marsch, who had duly been shipped to Red Bull Leipzig in Germany with his impressive coaching attracting the Red Bull empire to give him a run in Europe, had a very defined philosophy, one that had brought great success to the New York Red Bulls.

Marsch was a clear proponent of the high press. He demanded his teams play with great energy, intensity and tempo. That obviously came without the ball, when they incessantly pressed the opposition. But it also came with the ball. The New York attack was a direct one: they looked to serve Bradley Wright-Phillips with through passes early and quickly.

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These complementary tactics made the Red Bulls one of the most dangerous teams in MLS. Marsch resigned with the Red Bulls sitting second in the Eastern Conference with ten wins from their first 16 games of the year. He had led the Red Bulls to the Supporters’ Shield in 2015, his first season in charge, and largely found great success in the regular season. His departure was a blow to the Red Bulls.

Armas, an assistant to Marsch, then became the head coach. Although he had spent time coaching with Marsch, his style did have some key distinctions, most notably when in possession. He was naturally a proponent of the high press, being a Marsch understudy, but when his team had the ball, Armas preferred his team to be in control, rather than try and blitz teams with quick-strike moves.

Armas prefers a Guardiolian approach, where possession is treasured and the ball is protected, his team tasked with breaking down the opponents through slowly built, pressure-inducing attacks. It took time for the Red Bulls to acclimatise to this new approach, but, by the end of the season, it began to click, and, in Sunday’s 3-0 win over the Columbus Crew to win the Eastern Conference semi-final against Gregg Berhalter’s side, Armas’ dream was realised.

New York’s second goal was what Armas envisaged when he evolved the New York playing style. Tyler Adams has the ball in the left-back area. He lends the ball to Sean Davis and Tim Parker, then slides past a defender and plays a pass down the left flank to Kaku. Kaku then fizzes an excellent low pass into Bradley Wright-Phillips, who subsequently seeks out Alex Muyl just outside the penalty area. As Muyl spins past a defender, Adams, the man who started the whole move, wanders his way into the penalty area, receives a lovely pass from Muyl, before teeing up Alex Royer for the first-time finish from the penalty spot.

Every single pass was accurate. Every single pass on the floor. The movement off the ball was excellent. There was a fluidity of positions, a rotation of runs to pull the Crew defence out of its structure and exploit the subsequent space. This was the Red Bulls at their best, and playing just how Armas would have wanted when he arrived.

Whether Armas’ style will be enough for New York to end their playoff hoodoo remains to be seen. Atlanta United is no easy task in the Eastern Conference Championship. But Armas’ stamp on this team is undeniable and never was it more evident and so effervescent than in Sunday’s win over the Crew.