The New York Red Bulls get back to business this Sunday at Red Bull Arena when they take on the LA Galaxy at 1:00 PM in what marks the first match in the club’s three-game home stand.
This match up will not be short on star power, as LA’s Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane headline a Galaxy line up that will go up against Tim Cahill, Thierry Henry and a Red Bulls squad that is unbeaten in five straight. Although Henry has faced the reigning MLS Cup champions a few times in his career, but for Cahill, this is another first to check off on his to-do list.
“This is exciting. I think for me, it’s my first LA Galaxy New York Red Bulls game, I know there’s going to be so much media and speculation about it, and first time playing Landon [Donovan] in a long time. Also Robbie Keane,” Cahill said earlier this week. “I’m excited because it’s a massive game.”
Earlier this week we addressed not only the subject of New York’s current unbeaten streak, but also the unbeaten streak they have against the Galaxy during the regular season. Provided New York gets a win or a draw this Sunday, the unbeaten streak against LA will extend to five-straight as well.
Although Cahill, Donovan, Henry and Keane are obvious focal points for this match, it doesn’t take away from the fact that soccer is, after all, a team sport. With that being said, it would only do it some justice to look at the bigger picture involving these two teams.
So far this season, the Red Bulls have put together an assault that consists of a league-leading 19 Goals For and 25 Assists. The club also ranks third in shots with 165 and fourth in shots on goal, totaling 50.
As for LA, the club is tied with the Houston Dynamo for third overall in Goals For with 17, and finds itself in a tie with Sporting KC at fourth overall in assists, also with 17. The Galaxy joins the Red Bulls, Whitecaps, Impact and Crew at fourth overall with 50 Shots on Goal, and places seventh in Total Shots, with 142.
New York boasts a 21-point total off a 6-4-3 record and will take a five-game unbeaten streak into the start of this month’s home stand that includes visits from the Galaxy, Columbus Crew and Vancouver Whitecaps. To date, New York is 3-1-1 when playing in front of the home crowd, and is now facing a prime opportunity to add nine points to their total in what is the club’s longest run at home this season.
“Being at home I think we take a lot of energy from our fans,” said midfielder Dax McCarty. “We take a lot of energy from the stadium. We think we have one of the best stadiums in the league. So yeah, we definitely need to take advantage of our home. I mean, we predominantly do well at home.”
Get tickets now for Sunday’s match against the LA Galaxy by visiting Red Bulls Ticket Central, or call 877.RB.SOCCER.
