Head Coach Jesse Marsch said this is the deepest New York Red Bulls team heâs seen.
Marsch said that depth lies with the youth of the team.
âThe young guys are starting to show they understand what it takes,â Marsch said after training on Thursday. âThey donât need as much time with the USL team. Theyâre now ready for challenges here with the MLS team. Thatâs an exciting proposition for us.â
The average age of the Red Bulls is 25.5 years old.
âThe more we develop young players and they show theyâre ready for bigger challenges, the more that everything we do here is becoming more effective,â Marsch said.
Homegrown player Alex Muyl has scored the game-winning goal in back-to-back games for New York.
"I think Iâm doing the same things, I think I had good chances to score last year as well, I just didnât always score them," Muyl said on Thursday. "For me, just not thinking so much, playing a little bit more, enjoying myself and when the moments come, putting them away. For me, I donât think Iâm really doing anything differently. I donât want to do anything differently, I want to just continue to grow, thatâs what I want to do. I think, hopefully, that this year thatâs what can happen."
Homegrown players have played 1,549 minutes for New York in 2017, compared to 766 through the first eight games of 2016. The average age of Homegrown players is 21.8 years old.
The head coach said that seeing the younger players make impacts on the field is a sure sign that what they work on every day is working.
âI think it makes us all feel good,â he said. âIt makes us all feel like weâre doing our jobs well."
