NYCFC falls to Inter Miami for the second time in club history | OneFootball

Before New York City FC and Inter Miami CF could take the field, fans of the Queens’ team received some shocking news.  Alonso Martínez was not in the Starting XI, and this was not ideal since he is the leading scorer for the Pigeons.  This meant that Hannes Wolf, Nicolás Fernández Mercau, and Agustín Ojeda had all of the pressure on them to find the goals.

However, Martínez was available off the bench, but he was not starting due to an abductor injury. He came on as a substitute in the 61st minute, replacing Wolf, but even then, it was not good enough.  NYCFC lost 4-0, losing to the Herons just the second time in club history.

Clearly, the environment was one of the best of the season, and supporters would likely remember the match regardless of the negative result.  The large Pigeon that made its way throughout the five boroughs earlier in the season was on display, and there was plenty to do outside of the stadium.

Meanwhile, NYCFC really wanted to win.  It has been a couple of years since they beat Miami in the regular season, and all of the games during the Messi era have ended in draws.  They almost won in the season opener, but a late goal saw the match end in a draw.  Unfortunately, defensive breakdowns and a questionable decision by Pascal Jansen led to the loss this time around.

NYCFC was strong in the first half but poor in the second

As the game began, Inter Miami came out dominating possession.  NYCFC had to be on the defensive end early on and throughout the majority of the first half.  But for 42 minutes, they were very clean in the backline.  The lines were tight, and everyone worked together to make life in the Florida side’s final third extremely difficult.

The Pigeons still had their chances, though.  Some of the best in the first half included a header from Thiago Martins from a corner kick and an open shot for Fernández Mercau, who had nobody but the goalkeeper, Oscar Ustari, in front of him.  The Argentine could not get the ball on target and instead shot the ball slightly to the right of the goal.

But it was the 43rd minute when things changed.  Messi sent a perfect through-ball to Baltasar Rodríguez, who ran beyond the NYCFC defenders.  With ease, he put the ball past Matt Freese and put the Herons up before halftime.

When the second period of 45 minutes commenced, the Pigeons struggled to create decent clinical attacking opportunities.  It was clear Martínez was needed, so thankfully, he was available off the bench.  When he came on, there was hope that things would change.

Alas, that did not happen.  The Costa Rican struggled to get into the match, highlighting that he was not himself.  Still, it made sense for Jansen to bring him on.  What was an interesting decision was to take off Martins in the 73rd minute.  It was clear that the center-back, along with Justin Haak, were vital to keeping this game 0-0 before the first goal and 1-0 after the goal.

Hence, it was not shocking that Messi scored right after in the 74th minute.  The backline broke down, and the superstar took the opportunity to run beyond the defenders.  With a chip, he put the Herons in the position to win.

Then, the visitors just ripped NYCFC apart.  A penalty kick was given, and Luis Suárez scored in the 83rd minute.  But that was not the last goal, for Messi scored again in the 86th minute.  In other words, the substitutions made and putting Aiden O’Neill in the backline completely backfired.

Jansen completely deserves all of the criticism coming his way.  His backline was mostly doing well, and then Freese had some brilliant saves during the match.  But the head coach’s decisions in the second half ultimately hurt the Boys in Blue.  Sure, they could have still lost to Miami.  However, goal differential can influence a team in the standings.  If NYCFC is tied with a team on points and wins, then that comes into play.

It stinks, especially in such a great environment, that NYCFC lost the way that they did.  They cannot let this sit, for the result could impact their play in the upcoming games.  The Pigeons must forget and focus on the Hudson River Derby.