The Red Bulls debuted a new lineup on Saturday night in Chester, PA featuring attacking midfielder Dwayne De Rosario. New York dominated possession and chances but failed to capitalize on their offense edge in the 1-0 loss to the Union. A look at the player ratings from the match:
GK – Bouna Coundoul: One week after he gave up a poor goal in his season debut, Coundoul was rarely tested by the Union but still shaky. He flubbed numerous clearances and his back four lacked confidence in the second half to send him back passes. Not at fault on the goal but Greg Sutton must be looked on as the starter at this point. Rating: 5
D – Jan Gunnar Solli: Struggled in the opening 20 minutes with passing but gained momentum as the match wore on. Did well in his man-marking and hit several nice crosses. Would like to see Solli pushed up to challenge along the right wing at some point this year, where he’d seem more natural. Rating: 6
D – Rafa Marquez: Difficult to see the Designated Player stepping up to deliver a marquee performance in any match so far this season. Positioning was solid but very lackadaisical on the ball at times. Set pieces were mediocre at best. Rating: 5
D – Tim Ream: The young American center back of course flubbed a pass setting up Roger Torres’ game-winner in the 68th minute. But for that single moment, Ream was overall solid and far more consistent than Marquez. Rating: 5
D – Roy Miller: A quieter evening for Miller, who did not push up into the attack as frequently as the week before. He won his battles and was smart enough on the ball, but would like to see Miller pushing and overlapping more. Rating: 6
M – Dane Richards: Spurts of activity typified Richards night, who failed to consistently get the ball with space and momentum in the final third. His runs deep into the area were rarely rewarded with the ball. Rating: 6
M – Teemu Tainio: Not an overwhelmingly physical night for Tainio in a defensive role but his positioning was superb and his distribution consistent. Would like to see more creativity in his passing, ala the Week 1 assist, but it was a good go in a grinding and rough type of match. Rating: 7
M – Dwayne De Rosario: Chalk this one up to needing to gel, but the Canadian playmaker seemed a step off all night long. Set up Juan Agudelo once but the forward’s effort went off the post. A very sporadic, choppy effort from De Rosario. Rating: 5.5
M – Joel Lindpere: At the end of the match he seemed to push too much, losing the ball several times, but it was a solid night from Lindpere. Good effort, rarely lost the ball but a tad bit predictable in his creative spark. Good work-rate as always. Rating: 6.5
F – Juan Agudelo: More than strike partner Thierry Henry, it was the teenager who was the option of his teammates to feed the ball too. Two strikes off the post typified a frustrating night for Agudelo. Unlucky not to be on the scorer’s sheet. Rating: 6
F – Thierry Henry: Too cheeky at the wrong times, Henry’s performance was perhaps his worst since his mid-summer arrival. Rarely in dangerous places, Henry looked hesitant. Should have been subbed off instead of Agudelo. Never got into the ebb and flow of the game. Rating: 4.5
Substitutions:
F – Luke Rodgers: A peppery match for the Englishman who was pesky along the Union backline and one of the few Red Bulls players actively seeking space in the final third. Not much to show for all that work, though. Rating: 5.5
M – Mehdi Ballouchy: Rarely got settled as a late substitute in a match that had turned into hopeful long balls at that point for New York. Rating: 5
Kristian R. Dyer can be followed at twitter.com/KristianRDyer
