HANOVER, N.J. – Results have been hard to come by in 2016; but the New York Red Bulls aren’t about to dwell on their misfortunes.
Sure, there may be some frustration on both sides of the ball, but the stats back up what their eyes have been telling them; the Red Bulls are doing just about everything but putting the ball in the back of the net.
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“After the game, there’s frustration,” Mike Grella admitted. “We were on top in every single category, we felt like we were on top of the game, but there were still positives to take away. Today, there’s a good feeling around the camp, as always. We all understand that we have a very good team here. There’s a long way to go and we’ll get things right. We have full faith in the group.”
In a losing effort, New York still managed to create a plethora of chances that simply would not come off on the night. Firing 22 shots on Saturday, Kansas City goalkeeper Tim Melia certainly had his hands full, but the Long Island native stood tall to deny the Red Bulls at every turn.
“We’re in the top three in almost every offensive category besides goals scored,” said midfielder Sacha Kljestan. “We think the goals will come, it’s just a matter of finishing chances. We have to know that we should have a lot of confidence in creating chances, we just have to get a little bit more fortunate, maybe a bit more calm in front of goal.”
The results remain the most important takeaway, but the Red Bulls continue to believe they are on the right track, despite their early-season struggles. And after spending the morning breaking down the footage from their 2-0 home defeat, their decision to stay the course has only been reinforced.
“It’s been hard to swallow, especially this last game,” Kljestan told NewYorkRedBulls.com. “We played really well. We played some really nice attacking soccer, we pushed Kansas City back; I haven’t seem them play that deep in the last five years. To have so much control of that game and still not get a goal out of it is disappointing. Now, the pressure starts to build a little bit, but we have to take confidence that we created so many chances against a quality opponent. Sooner or later, they’re going to go in.”
It would be easy for heads to drop given the lack of success in front of goal to start the year, but the Red Bulls contend that a bounce here or there could end up being the difference between three points and a loss. With two crucial road games fast approaching, the onus is on the attacking core to get it right, starting on Wednesday night.
“We just haven’t put it together yet,” Grella added. “Some of the games we’re unlucky, sometimes it’s mistakes; we just have to put the full package together. For sure, we have the right guys and the right system in place. We just need to execute on gameday.”
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