Keys to the Game

KEYS TO THE GAME, pres. by Honda: Sporting Kansas City vs. New York Red Bulls

Keys to the Game 041419

The New York Red Bulls (1-3-1, 4 pts) have back-to-back road matches, beginning with Sporting Kansas City (2-1-2, 8 pts) at Children’s Mercy Park at 7 p.m. ET. 


Here are the Keys to the Game, presented by Honda:


Clean Sheet

Coming off a historic 2018 season, the Red Bulls' defenders are still searching for their first clean sheet of the year.


New York is looking to clean things up in the backfield and want to get all things perfect between the defense.


"When we get that right as a team, I feel like we're unstoppable," Kemar Lawrence said. "Simple as that."


Blue Hell

The Red Bulls will have a difficult task ahead of themselves, as they head to Children's Mercy Park, one of the toughest places to play in MLS.


But the Red Bulls have fared well in Kansas City of late, owning a 2-1-2 mark in their last five league matches.


New York will look to improve upon that come Sunday night.


Bench Boost

In their last match, the subs off the bench helped spur some competitiveness for New York.


Marcus Epps and Derrick Etienne Jr. both came in as part of a double-sub and injected some punch on the pitch.


"You guys brought the energy," Luis Robles said after the match. "That was great."


Who can come off the bench and add some flavor in KC?