HANOVER, N.J. – Nearly a quarter of the way into the season, the league table is beginning to take shape. And as it stands, the New York Red Bulls and FC Dallas could hardly be in more varying positions.
After nine games, Dallas sits atop the Supporters’ Shield standings, notching five wins and collecting 17 points thus far. The Red Bulls, however, remain on the opposite end of the spectrum. Even after Sunday’s win, New York sit on just six points and at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
Since finding themselves knotted at a league-best 60 points at the end of last season, the two sides have seen their seasons take off in different directions. Still, head coach Jesse Marsch remains focused on what lies ahead rather than past results.
“For us, it’s just about addressing that Dallas is a very good team,” he told reporters after training on Thursday. “I know they’re disappointed with their result in Vancouver, but I don’t think there’s much dialogue about the Supporters’ Shield last year.”
Hoping to build on their positive result at the weekend, New York will be looking for more of the same from their front four, but still need to address their issues at the back. And facing a Dallas side that has already bagged 15 goals, the individual battles will be of paramount importance.
“Against Dallas, you really have to be aware of where their dangerous players are when we have the ball,” defender Sal Zizzo. “There are a lot of guys that can hurt you in transition if we’re sloppy and give balls away. We just have to know where they are at all times.”
Amongst the more prolific attacking sides in the league, FC Dallas posses several key threats that New York have identified and will need to slow down if they are to have success on Friday.
“They’re most dangerous when you have the ball,” Marsch added. “As we’re in the attack—and this could be a game where we possess the ball a lot—if we lose bad balls and those players are in free space, it can cause you a lot of trouble.
“For sure we’ll have to keep track of [Mauro] Diaz; he’s the one that makes them tick in the attacking part of the field. He has explosive guys to play with in [Maximiliano] Urruti, [Michael] Barrios and [Fabian] Castillo. It’s a big challenge for our defensive crew going into this game.”
The Red Bulls have had their issues at the back and will certainly have a tall task ahead of them on Friday. A quick, skillful attacking core, Dallas has no shortage of options in the final third, but the Red Bulls believe they have a gameplan in place to help neutralize one of the league’s most dangerous sides.
“We’re going up against one of the best teams in the league and a team that’s pretty similar to us,” midfielder Sacha Kljestan said. “They have a great mentality, they defend well, and they’ve got four attacking guys who are really special. They’re a very good team with some very dynamic, young players that we have to be aware of so that we don’t get caught.”
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