Player Ratings: Week Five

Would you look at that?  Another draw! With the latest tie in Montreal, the New York Red Bulls bring their point total to an impressive four points in five games.  Simply put, that's just not good enough.   On the bright side, the Red Bulls did put in a much improved performance while missing four starters.   While the match could have absolutely been a win, the team has to be feeling confident going into next week on the road in D.C.  Let's take a look at how the guys did:

Luis Robles - 8.5 (MOTM): Robles had better not pay for his own dinner for the next week.  If there was any doubt who deserved the starting keeper spot, Luis Robles has put that debate to bed over the past five games.  Last Saturday's match could have easily been a 5-2 loss if not for the New York keeper's lights out performance.   Quite possibly his most impressive performance since putting on the red and white.

Roy Miller - 6: A decent match for the Costa Rican full back that happened to end too soon.   Due to injuries, Miller was subbed out after the first half.  No major gaffs and no major contributions, Roy continues to play just well enough to keep himself out of the angry mobs line of sight.

Ibrahim Sekagya - 5: Sekagya is the only reason the Impact didn't get a chance to celebrate a third goal in the match.  His goal line clearance saved the day and the center back's ranking.   Aside from that one moment of brilliance, Ibra seemed to be caught sleeping more than once.   It may be an issue with communication, but Sekagya shared partial responsibility on both Montreal goals.

Armando - 4: Easily Armando's worst outing in a Red Bull kit.   The Spanish defender looked completely lost out there.  Luckily for New York, Marco Di Vaio was born off sides.  If not the case, Robles would have been forced to double his already burdensome workload.  After a late game injury, Armando was subbed off and his miserable performance was put out to pasture.

Kosuke Kimura - 3: If you were curious to see what kind of match it took to make a person long for Richard Eckersley's speedy return, this would be the one.   Kimura was absolutely dreadful.   While doing his best to get up field and aid in the attack, Kimura was constantly caught out of position and getting roasted down the right flank.  What a stinker for the mostly reliable right back.   Hopefully this isn't the start of a new trend.  We're willing to bet he bounces back next week.

Jonny Steele - 6: Steele put in the kind of performance that made him such a fan favorite all last season.  Nothing but work rate, the Northern Irish journeyman put in the exact kind of shift that Mike Petke needs from him.   Nothing too fancy, but a necessary piece of this team's best functioning lineup.  It was also nice to see him notch his first goal of 2014.

Eric Alexander - 4: Meh.

Bobby Convey - 4: Meh x 2.  If not for some key players out with some knocks, Convey is completely dispensable.

Lloyd Sam - 7: At this point, any compliments given to Lloyd Sam would simply be redundant.   Nothing short of our best player on the pitch, outside of Luis Robles, Sam has consistently been New York's best attacking force of the season and given himself a fair shot of team MVP should his form carry through the year.  No one else on the pitch has created something out of nothing the way Lloyd Sam has done for five straight matches.

Peguy Luyindula - 6: Some may consider a six a little low considering Peguy scored his second goal in as many games, but shanking a PK like that is just unacceptable.  That penalty goes in, New York wins the game and doubles their point total on the year.  That said, Luyindula continues to be a valuable source of creativity in the midfield and seems to have finally found his scoring boots.

Bradley Wright-Phillips - 5: Wright-Phillips is a confusing one.   He seems to be doing all the right things, but he's just not producing.   We could chalk this up to league inexperience, so that's what we're going to do.   It's been said before that the English forward is all sizzle and no steak, but we're pretty sure the steak is on the way.

Mike Petke - 6: You can't knock Petke too hard after escaping Montreal with a point while working with a wounded team, but the decision to bench Dax McCarty is a bizarre one.   The second year coach continues to make some mind boggling decisions but it's tough to argue with his use of subs after a few in game injuries.

Substitutions

Dax McCarty - 7: Dax continues to prove that he's at his best when playing as a true destroyer.  As soon as the ginga ninja entered the game, the defense took on a whole new look, one that worked miles better against an attacking Montreal.  It's possible that starting a game on the bench had Petke's desired effect, because Dax looked to be in the best form of the season to this point.   Here's hoping for a continued improvement.

Matt Miazga - N/A: The young homegrown didn't really get enough minutes to give an actual rating.  For the most part, he looked okay.