New York City FC Vs Tigres UANL: 3 things we learned – Game management

2. A blossoming midfield

New York City FC were excellent in the first half. They utterly controlled the match, played out from the back beautifully, allowing them to release pressure and build attacks, and put themselves into advantageous attacking situations that they were ultimately unable to take advantage of. And all of this stemmed from a superb central midfield.

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James Sands returned to his defensive midfield role, while Keaton Parks and Alex Ring shifted into two half-eights, positioned either side of Sands and in slightly more advanced positions. Maxi Moralez dropped to the bench to accommodate this midfield triumvirate.

It was a superbly balanced trio. Sands was excellent in the holding role, shuttling side-to-side to quell counter-attacks, while using the ball efficiently and quickly to instigate attacks. Parks was a ranging, powerful, all-active box-to-box midfielder, striding forward well, playing consistent passes that almost always found their target. Ring was the most offensive trio, making piercing runs in behind the Tigres defence and linking up with Heber especially well.

Quite how Ronny Deila will structure his team throughout the season remains to be seen, but this central midfield offered power, technical quality, control in possession, and positional balance. It is sure to be something that he will explore further throughout 2020.