Two days before Sunday’s Hudson River Derby between New York City FC and the Red Bulls at Yankee Stadium, Red Bulls goalkeeper Luis Robles prais🥂ed his team for surviving an ugly win the previous week in Toronto.
“It wasn’t our best performance and yet we were able to get three points against a tou🔥gh opponent on the road, and that continues to build the momentum that we need going into the second half of the season — especially against an opponent like New York City FC,’’ Robles told The Post on Friday. “The mark o🌳f a good team is the ability to win ugly. Maybe in years past we don’t win that game.’’
If that’s the case, Sunday night resembled “years past’’ for the Red Bulls, who — after entering the match with a 7-2-1 record in their previous 10 games — regressed Sunday night before 30,027 in The Bronx. They played ugly and — this time — didn’t get away with ꩲit, losing 1-0 to NYCFC, which leapfrogged ahead them into second place in the Eastern Conference standings.
In a match that was so choppy and devoid of rhythm it felt like it set the MLS back a decade ♋or so — particularly with the artistry of the World Cup currently taking center stage in Russia — the result appeared destined to finish in a scorele🐼ss draw.
But a defensive miscue by usually reliable Red Bulls defender Aaron Long served up a turnover to NYCFC’s Jo🍎nathan Lewis, who fed crafty 5-foot-3 midfielder Maxi Moralez for the game’s only goal, which came in the 85th minute.
Lewis had been subbed in for Rod🥃ney Wallace nine minutes before the game-winner.
“We were trying to find some space behind [the Re▨d Bulls’] high press,’’ NYCFC coach Dome Torrent said. “The last 20 minutes, they were high-pressing and th🍬ere was some space behind them. I said to Jonathan, ‘Run behind their high press and you can find some space.’”
Thanks to the defensive gaffe, that’s exactly what Lewis and Moralez did — and it kept NYCFC’s unbeaten record at Yankee Stadium alive. NYCFC is nowꩵ 8-0-1 at home this season.
“It’s obviously disappointing not to come out of here with points,’’ said Red Bulls coach Chris Armas, who was in his first game as head coach after Jesse Marsch’s sudden departure 🅺Friday. “I thought there was a goal coming.’’
It never did.
What stung t💛he Red Bulls most was the fact the defining play came from two of their most dependable players — Tyler Adams, who was all over the field, and Long, who Armas said, “Puts out so many fires for us.’’
Long called the defensive mistake “just one of tho𒉰se awkward plays, where I think [Adams] is going to touch i🐈t and he thinks I’m going to touch it and it rolls through.
“I don’t know if he meant the cross that he did, but it sneaks through my legs for the tap-in there,’’ Long said. “It’s unfortunate that weও let that go in. If I just stepped to it and cleared it out of there it solves the problem.’’
Adams said, “Maybe he could have hit his foot through it, maybe not. But it’s a mistake, and it’s one that you c🌠an’t really make, because teams are goinꩵg to punish you.’’
To their credit, both Adams a🤪nd Long sounded as if they felt the Red Bulls got exactly what they deserved in the result, which leaves the Red Bulls at 10-5-2 with 32 points, two behind NYCFC (10-4-4 with 34 points) and Atlanta (12-4-4 with 40 points).
“We don’t think that we played our best,’’ Long said. “We know that we can do more. On a day where we don’t play our best, we’re only mad at our effort, were ⛦not mad at the end result. We can only grind out so many games in a row without playing well.’’