With Man down, City Win over Fire
NYCFC got off to a bright start in their second match in four days, dominating possession in the attacking half through the early minutes.
In the third minute, NYCFC were denied a penalty shout when Yangel Herrera made a brilliant tackle in the final third, carried the ball into the box, and had his legs swept out from under him by Johan Kappelhof before he was able to get a shot off.
This would be far from the only action of the opening minutes. Not long after, Herrera was on the other end of some foul play, quickly earning two yellow cards and finding himself sent off after just ten minutes. Despite the numerical disadvantage, NYCFC didn’t take their foot off the gas. Plenty of possession and attacking intent were present for City.
As the half wore on, Chicago found their way into the match more and more, mounting some attacking pressure and working the ball down the wings. NYCFC, playing something like a 4-1-3-1 after losing Herrera, NYCFC coped with the pressure by concentrating bodies centrally.
Just past the half hour mark, Ben Sweat was subbed off after colliding with Frederic Brillant as the two went up to head a Chicago corner clear of the box. Vieira brought on midfielder Mikey Lopez, looking to provide NYCFC with even more midfield presence.
NYCFC were on the attack again soon enough, and in the 38th minute, Jonathan Lewis almost struck gold in his debut start.
That would have been pretty, pretty cool.
The next dangerous moment came just on the stroke of 45 minutes, as Johan Kappelhof sent in a shot from long range that was deflected at the top of the box, forcing Sean Johnson into a terrific save. With little time to react, Johnson managed to get his fingertips on the ball, sending it over the bar and out of danger.
David Villa gave NYCFC the best possible start to the second half, volleying home a cross from Jonathan Lewis to put City up 1-0. Lewis latched onto the ball down the right flank, putting the moves on Chicago’s Brandon Vincent before cutting the ball back to the top of the box for Villa.
Just a few minutes later, NYCFC found the back of the net again. Though this one was much less aesthetically pleasing than the first goal, they all count. After a scramble in the box, Frederic Brillant found a way to get his head on the ball and a Chicago defender’s foot at the same time, nudging the ball into the back of the net.
The flurry of action wasn’t over yet, though. Chicago would pull one back in the 54th minute by way of a long-range David Accam strike. NYCFC were looking to break out after clearing a corner kick, but Accam’s half-tackle-half-shot attempt from 25 yards struck the underside of the crossbar and bounced in just over the goalline.
NYCFC would have another penalty shout denied in the 61st minute, as Maxi Moralez was judged to have been fouled just outside the Chicago box. A blaze of half-chances from the free kick would follow, but the Fire would be bailed out by an offside call.
NYCFC once again dropped their defensive lines a little bit deeper as the half wore on, but managed to build possession and attacking chances even into the final minutes, when some fancy footwork helped the Blues wind down the clock as the game drew to a close.
City would go onto survive a blizzard of shots from Chicago as they mounted a final push that extended into extra time, thanks in no small part to some heroics from Sean Johnson, who was facing his former team for the first time today.
NYCFC Head Coach Patrick Vieira..
On what it shows about the team after winning playing with a man down:
“I think to manage to win the game we did today, you don’t win these types of games if you don’t show the togetherness, the character, and I think today we showed a little desire and a little discipline as well. When I looked at the players after the game in the dressing room, I couldn’t have asked for more than what they gave today. They managed to keep the result and win the game because of the way they played today.”
On David Villa:
“He played the game with a lot of passion, a lot of love. The way he played today, he is our leader. He is a fantastic example for the players around and the way we work. He is unbelievable. For me he has to be one if not the best foreign players in the league. Not just the way he scores goals, but the way he works, the way he commits himself. He’s a terrific example for all the young kids who want to become professionals. If you look at last year with Frank, with Andrea and with David, and this year with Maxi, we really have players who make it to the high levels and are good examples for the younger players in our football club.”
On how the team managed to play so well with a man down and come out with a win:
“I think what was going on with 10 men is that players will group together fighting and working harder than when there are 11, which I think is really strange. We’ve been disciplined and we knew what we needed to do and I think we did it quite well.”
NEW YORK CITY FC GOALKEEPER SEAN JOHNSON
On mentality after losing a man
“I think mentally we were in a different place today. Even down a man, there was still a different feeling this game compared to last game and you know we had an advantage for the most part of the game. Credit to the guys. We pressed on. We scored two goals. If we can manage to score two goals with a man down, I think it’s our job as a collective unit especially defensively to not concede two to tie the game up. We’ve got to fight tooth and nail and put everything out there and I think every person that stepped on the field gave it 100 plus percent.”
On playing his former team
“For me, I was just focused on the occasion. For us, we were playing a team that’s ahead of us in the standings. We understood the importance of the game, so I didn’t put any more emphasis on the fact that they were my old team or the fact that I was there last year and know a lot of those guys. It was good to play against a lot of familiar faces and it was fun to be a part of and it was good to come out on top.”
On NYCFC standings with Toronto and Chicago
“This was huge for us. It came at a time with rapid succession. We’re getting 4 points out of 6. Obviously we wanted 6 out of 6 but it was the best case scenario against Toronto. I made a comment after that game that we needed to build on the positives and really look at the negatives and tweak a few things and I think today it should. With a man down we fought harder, we were more organized, we battled harder over the course of 90+ minutes and we were able to come out with 3 points.”
On a win in this conference, going back to Toronto next week
“We needed this win. Especially being up two goals, it would’ve been a crusher to give up a lead. After they scored the goal, I think in that moment we were a little bit complacent and we snapped right into it and realized that we need to do whatever it takes to come out of this game and win. I think everybody from that point on found it within to take it to another level and come out with a win.”
On factors that contributed to win
“I think being home, in front of our supporters made it a tough game to play. The emotions coming off last game, and we didn’t want to experience that again. I think the mentality was just different. No one dropped their heads when we were down a man, I think our best spell came in those 20 minutes after that. It really gave us what we need. Maybe playing a man down is what we needed to give us a kick in the rear end.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BW6jlZOgAFG/
