CHESTER, Pa. — The New York Red Bulls didn't win the Supporters' Shield this year like they did a year ago (and two years before that). They didn't even finish with the second-best record in MLS (that distinction belongs to the Colorado Rapids). Despite that, the Red Bulls still walked off the field at Talen Energy Stadium on Sunday looking every bit like the favorites to win the 2016 MLS Cup title.
Jesse Marsch could have chosen to rest his players given the fact the Red Bulls had a virtual hammerlock on first place in the East heading into Sunday, but instead he trotted out his first-choice lineup. That group didn't play like a team going through the motions either. It played at the high level the Red Bulls have made a habit of reaching over the past three months, and rewarded Marsch's decision to let his team ride its hot hand rather than letting it cool off just as the MLS playoffs are about to begin.
"I'm not of the opinion that rest helps, and actually I think over the last two years after international windows we've come out a little sluggish," Marsch told Goal USA. "I think our Columbus performance (in a scrappy 3-2 win last week, after an international break) was an example. We benefit from being in a rhythm, and so I knew it would be important for everybody to keep that going."
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Sunday could not have gone any better for a team seeking to keep its run going. The Red Bulls earned the victory, recorded a shutout, added another road win to the resume, avoided injuries, and even found some playing time for reserves who could be called upon in the playoffs.
"We're in a good place right now. We're not perfect, but we're confident right now," Red Bulls defender Aurelien Collin told Goal USA. "But you know how the playoffs are. In a two-game series you have to be very disciplined. If we concentrate, and play with discipline, we can do well"
That was clear to see on Sunday, when the Red Bulls found motivation to succeed even though there wasn't much on the line. That response left Marsch feeling good about where his team's mindset is heading into the postseason.
"I give our group a lot of credit because we talked about the fact that we wanted to have a playoff-like mentality, and treat this as a dress rehearsal, but it's easier to say that sometimes than to actually go out and execute it," he said. "I thought from the beginning of the game that they were on top of it, and they went after it, and it meant a lot to them to get the result tonight."
If there has been a knock against the Red Bulls, even during their unbeaten streak, it has been their penchant for surrendering goals when holding leads. In fact, they dropped points in five matches where they held multi-goal leads before late-game collapses, and nearly saw it happen again a week ago when a 3-0 lead turned into a 3-2 lead against Columbus before holding on for the win.
Marsch knows all too well that mental lapses can lead to swift punishment, and disappointment, once the playoffs are underway. it is a lesson the Red Bulls should remember from last year's playoff series loss to Columbus.
"What we've talked about is every play matters, every moment matters, and you can't shut down for one second," Marsch said. "I think all the adversity we've been through, there's always new challenges around the corner, but I feel like based on the fact that our group has stuck together in some really tough times this year, and rallied around each other. After a tough start, and (blown) leads and everything else, and given what we went through last year together, I think they know who we are. they know how much this means to all of us and they're ready to go all out and go after it in such a big way."
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Marsch even believes his team's penchant for blowing leads in recent months has had a silver lining in that it has served to keep the team focused in a way that defeats normally would. For a team that hasn't lost since July 3, the sting of watching leads evaporate on multiple occasions led to some soul-searching for a team that knows it has few peers when it is playing at its best.
"I think the slip-ups have kept us focused on what it takes to be successful, and kept us hungry," Marsch said. "I think if we would have been like I know we could be, we would have been way out front (in the standings), and if we would have been there I think it would have been hard to continue to inject the hunger. I think there might have been more complacency that would have naturally come in. I think having those hiccups come our way has kept us on our toes and kept us moving forward."
While he may not have been willing to accept the label of title favorite, Marsch believes his team is ready to make a serious run at the championship that has eluded the club for its entire 20-year existence. The Red Bulls have won the Supporters' Shield in two of the past four seasons, but watched those previous editions fail to even reach the MLS Cup final, let alone win it. Now, with the league's leading goal scorer in Bradley Wright-Phillips, and assist man in Sacha Kljestan, and a group that has gone 20 straight matches without tasting defeat, the Red Bulls have as good a chance as ever to grab the crown they so desperately seek.
"If we can manage for 90 minutes to have 11 guys who are alert and understand what makes them good, and what makes us good, I think we have the highest percentage of putting games on our terms," Marsch said. "And if we put the games on our terms we have a very good chance of succeeding."
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