In what is one of the most electric atmospheres that is seen to date the New York Red Bulls and New York City FC kicked-off at Red Bull Arena in front of a crowd of 25,291.
With playoff implications on the line there was a ton of tension on both sides of the pitch as the franchises on each side were hoping to punch a ticket to the postseason.
It was at the end of the night New York City FC painting the town Blue, with a 5-1 victory, playing with a style that is hopefully going to be fun to watch.
The guys were able to stretch the field and their legs, pass the ball to each other and played aggressively in earning the victory.
Maxi Moralez brought a hush over the crowd at Red Bull Arena by scoring a goal in the 5′ for an early 1-0 lead.
From there, on what was a rainy day in Harrison, the Boys in Blue doubled the lead with a right- footed shot from Alonso Martinez to the bottom right corner.
The Red Bulls made things close when at the 28′ Dante Vanzeir made the night 2-1, but from there it was NYCFC opening up the flood gates and scoring twice more prior to the half on goals by Andres Perea and Alonso Martinez.
There was a ton of action in the half and some very close moments, especially when the Red Bulls added Emil Forsberg and Elias Manoel to the match.
It was incredible to see the impact that both Forsberg and Manoel made to the Red Bulls offense, as they were able to combine for some wonderful opportunities throughout the night.
NYCFC had some subs making an impact as well including the defensive play of Birk Risa, getting some good moments from Julian Fernandez and Mounsef Bakrar.
The victory for the Boys in Blue was capped on a goal by Tayvon Gray as he found the back of the net with a left- footed shot from the central position.
With the score of 5-1 that is the largest margin of victory for New York City FC this season and in one of the most meaningful moments of the year.
It was right after the three-points were earned that both teams got some tremendous news in that both New York City FC and the New York Red Bulls clinched a spot in the 2024 MLS Playoffs.
For the Red Bulls they extended the postseason streak to 15 consecutive seasons.
There are some other memorable notes for those that are Red Bulls fans as Goalkeeper Carlos Coronel made his 125th appearance for the franchise. That ties Tony Meola for second place in franchise history for games played by a goalkeeper.
The road to the MLS Playoffs is not going to be an easy one for both sides as they have some tough teams upcoming.
For New York City FC they are going to host FC Cincinnati on Wednesday, October 2 in a match to be played at Red Bull Arena starting at 7:30 p.m.
As for the Red Bulls they are going to make their way to Canada to take on FC Toronto on October in a match to be played at BMO Field at 7:30 p.m.
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