New York Red Bulls: Finding consistency the next step

There have been a lot of good moments in the New York Red Bulls 2019 season, but the uncharacteristic mistakes must stop for the team to take the next step.

After the weekend’s disappointing result against the Columbus Crew, the New York Red Bulls now remain on 34 points and sit in a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. However, the team will need to focus on being able to put a stretch of strong results together as their busy summer winds down.

Due to national team call-ups and injuries, head coach Chris Armas has been forced into many different variations of starting XIs, with players like Brian White have been asked to carry team’s offensive attack.

It’s hard not to think that all the forced changes to the starting line-up have been a major factor in the team’s inconsistency. It took the Red Bulls until the last week in April and the first week in May to string together back-to-back wins. And even since that point, it has been a roller-coaster summer, to say the least.

A 4-0 win to open up June against Real Salt Lake was followed up by a 3-2 loss to Philadelphia (a game in which the Red Bulls led 2-0 into the second half). A 3-1 win against Chicago, where the Fire outplayed New York for large portions was followed up by a 4-0 loss in Houston in a mid-week game where the Red Bulls looked flat from the start. In the middle of July, New York showed a lot of grit with two extremely draining games, a 3-3 draw in Atlanta and a 2-1 derby victory over NYCFC. But then they started off slow against Toronto and ultimately fell 3-1.

Part of the inconsistency is because of the team’s aggressive style of play. The high press is a high-risk-high-reward tactic. When it works, as it did for Brian White’s lone goal in the 1-0 road win over Orlando last week, it takes both a mental and physical toll on opponents. But when it can be navigated, as teams are able to do with increasing regularity, it often leaves the defensive midfield and backline exposed.

In Saturday night’s game against the Crew, seconds after the New York Red Bulls had gone ahead through White, a simple long ball over the top to Gyasi Zardes stretched the defense and Luis Argudo found himself striding into the box wide open to slot home the equalizer. To open up the second half, one ball around Michael Murillo, who was caught in front of his man, opened up the defense and led to the second goal for Columbus. Too often this season, the Red Bulls have not forced the opposition to work to break them down. Their own mental mistakes are their biggest enemy right now.

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At half-time, Armas said that the team was playing in a reactive manner, rather than the normal proactive style of play that he’s used to. He was noticeably upset about how much space the Crew players found themselves in. With the press, there will inevitably be space somewhere on the field. That’s what former midfielder Tyler Adams was so good at, closing down that space.

Cristian Casseres Jr. has been an exciting breakthrough player so far this season, playing a role similar to Tyler Adams, but he is not the same calibre of player just yet. Moreover, fewer teams are trying to dribble out of the press and are instead sending long balls over the top and bypassing the midfield. Because Casseres Jr. and the full-backs are usually pushed up the field, the backline has found themselves exposed and are conceding more goals than Red Bulls fans have come to expect.

In all of last year’s regular season, the New York Red Bulls conceded 33 goals. After the trip to Columbus, they have already conceded 34 through 23 games this season. As mentioned earlier, part of it has been a run of misfortune. Tim Parker has battled injuries during the season, Aaron Long missed a portion due to the Gold Cup, and Armas has been tasked with making sure that Kemar Lawrence continues to feel rested in order for the Jamaican international to remain healthy, but a newfound consistent form for the Red Bulls is contingent upon securing the defensive midfield and the backline, and this cannot solely be put down to luck.

As July winds down, the Red Bulls will be tested in August. The team and their 3-5-3 record away from the friendly confines of Red Bull Arena will travel out to league leaders in points LAFC, D.C. United, who are currently tied for third place in the Eastern Conference, and rivals New York City FC. It is a massive stretch that will be crucial in the 2019 season as Armas and his players desperately search for some consistency.