A poor match sees NYCFC lose 2-0 to the New England Revolution | OneFootball

On Saturday, New York City FC found themselves on the road in Massachusetts to take on the New England Revolution.  This match took place about a month after the opposite fixture, which saw the Pigeons win 2-1.  It was arguably a defensive performance, but the Boys in Blue managed to grab the goals after Thiago Martins was responsible for an own goal that saw the Revolution go up early.

Plus, New England had yet to win and was struggling in the early part of the season.  Arguably, there were still issues entering this matchup, for the only goals were from Carles Gil, and they came from the spot after the team was awarded penalty kicks.  Still, things were brighter for the home team, and the Pigeons knew they had a challenging game ahead of them.

NYCFC also notoriously struggles on the road.  They should have won in Atlanta, but a 3-1 lead turned into a 4-3 loss.  As such, the Pigeons knew they had two chances away from home against New England and then next week against Toronto FC.  But with Leonardo Campana back, the home team’s attack suddenly became more dangerous.

As a result, NYCFC fell 2-0 to the New England Revolution.  Once again, the Pigeons struggled to capitalize on chances, and the road woes continued to plague the team.

NYCFC falls 2-0 to New England

NYCFC and the Revolution began the match sharing bouts of possession.  It was even for the most part, with the exception of the stronger attacking opportunities by the home side.  A few of the shots were easy saves for Matt Freese, but the difference was that they were shooting the ball on target.

That is not to say that NYCFC was abysmal in the attack.  They had multiple offensive sequences in the first half that should have led to shots on target, let alone more shots.  They had just four, while New England kept the backline busy.  That is why it was not surprising that the home team struck first.

In the 43rd minute, Campana scored the team’s first goal from open play.  The Pigeons failed to clear the ball out of danger, and the forward, who missed some time due to injury, took his shot.  It deflected off Justin Haak, bounced beyond Freese into the goal, and woke something up in the team.

A few minutes after the start of the second half, Ignatius Ganago scored the team’s second of the night.  NYCFC failed to properly mark the player, as Gil sent the ball into the box after he received it from a short corner kick.  With a run and a forceful tap, the forward left the defense behind him and easily put the ball past Freese.

That goal does not help the goalkeeper with his quest to make the USMNT.  After the final whistle, he had five saves.  However, Freese cannot be put into a position to make a save when the defenders do their job poorly.

It also did not help that the NYCFC wingers’ production was deficient. There were some decent runs, especially by Agustín Ojeda in the first half.  However, he was taken out at halftime since he could not produce solid crosses and chances.  In addition, Mounsef Bakrar, who for some reason started the game, was detrimental to any clinical chances.

In the end, NYCFC had 16 shots, with two on target.  They were more threatening in the second half. Their offense is missing the finishing ability though, which has been seen in now four of their last five games.  In those four, the Boys in Blue have scored none twice and one goal twice.  Although the offensive chances became more promising for the team as Pascal Jansen’s substitutes came on throughout the second half.  Still, the effort was not good enough.

At the same time, the backline either puts up a really good performance or struggles.  The lack of consistency is very problematic.  Moreover, after arguing that Haak should partner with Thiago Martins, this game continues to make it questionable whether Pascal Jansen has the correct center-back pairing.  Haak should still get his opportunities, but there are so many questions with the central defense.

The truth of the matter is this: NYCFC must find a way to win against a poor Toronto FC team when they meet next week.  Otherwise, there might be some problems for the team from the Big Apple.