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Three Thoughts: New York Red Bulls second best for the first time against NYCFC

RBNY caps a four-game road trip with its worst performance of the bunch.

By Austin Fido
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

New York City FC has a win against RBNY to celebrate for the first time, and the Red Bulls have questions to answer about their lamentable form for the fourth consecutive game. The blue team is making the most of it...

...the men in red have a lot of thinking to do after a 2-0 loss in Yankee Sta

1. Welp

The New York Red Bulls have not been playing well on their four-game summer road trip: dropping leads and points all over the country. They saved their worst for last: no lost lead this time because RBNY never scored; trailing from the 8th minute; visibly second-best as the game progressed and NYCFC got more comfortable with simply waiting for the Red Bulls to cough up the ball.

RBNY had plenty of possession and matched the home team's shot count (13), but only managed three on target. On a different day, maybe one of those shots go in; on most days, the lackluster Red Bulls lose this one.

The team appears out of gas and out of ideas. Jesse Marsch's big idea for this game was subbing out Felipe for Gonzalo Veron in the 70th minute, adding an extra man to the attack when his team was two goals down and seemed to be going backwards. Bringing in Anatole Abang for BWP in the last 10 minutes had the curious effect of drying up what had been a reliable supply of crosses to the six-yard box when the smaller man was playing up front.

It's time to go home, put this sorry stretch of games in the past, and prep for back-to-back home matches starting with Portland's visit on July 10.

2. Harrison wins again

In typical NYCFC fashion, the team's first win over its neighbors and therefore greatest triumph of its short history (they haven't had much to celebrate: the second-greatest triumph is Frank Lampard is actually playing on the regular) is owed to Harrison.

Jack Harrison - named after the New Jersey town where NYCFC fans fear to tread - scored the opening goal and set up the second.

He played well throughout, and continued the theme of these NY-NYC derbies: Harrison always wins.

3. Defensive crisis ahoy

All season, the Red Bulls have wrestled with personnel issues at center back. Now they have a few more. Chris Duvall was sent off for almost breaking Andrea Pirlo's leg.

Aurelien Collin picked up the caution that will cause him to sit out a game for yellow card accumulation.

The Red Bulls have a week before their next competitive game, and it will be a somewhat tense week for the physiotherapy team. Damien Perrinelle is still rehabbing: he is penciled in for his longest on-field stint yet in the July 6 friendly against Club America, and the plan almost certainly was not to have him try to start in MLS four days later. Gideon Baah has been carrying the dreaded "day to day" designation since he took a knock against Columbus on June 25. (The last man in the team described as "day-to-day" was Shaun Wright-Phillips, who hasn't played since he limped off the field in Rochester on June 15.) Kemar Lawrence isn't expected to back from his injury until August.

And Karl Ouimette is on loan to Jacksonville Armada. That might be a short stint in NASL for the Canadian if his colleagues don't get fit fast. It's hard to see Jesse Marsch making an effective back line out of Sal Zizzo, Justin Bilyeu, Connor Lade and Ronald Zubar. But he may have to try if RBNY's injury list doesn't get shorter quickly.

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