Add Houston Dynamo to New York Red Bulls' 2017 preseason schedule

The New York Red Bulls have announced half their preseason schedule. The second half of the team's preseason is, officially, To Be Determined. But the first segment of RBNY's January-February calendar aligned with what had been expected based on the published schedules of other MLS teams, and it therefore seems reasonable to suggest the second piece of the preseason puzzle will bear strong resemblance to what we are already able see in the official announcements of other squads.

Back on January 11, Houston Dynamo published its preseason schedule, which includes a game against RBNY on February 22. Yes, that February 22: the same day RBNY plays Vancouver in CONCACAF Chamions League.

To that we can add the published plans of NYCFC, Sporting Kansas City, and the organizers of the Desert Diamond Cup to arrive at the following conclusion:

New York Red Bulls' 2017 Preseason, Phase 2: February 8 to February 22 (and beyond)

February 8: return to Arizona

February 15: vs NYCFC in Desert Diamond Cup, Arizona

February 18: vs Sporting Kansas City in Desert Diamond Cup, Arizona

February 22: vs Houston Dynamo in Desert Diamond Cup, Arizona (preseason); vs. Vancouver Whitecaps at Red Bull Arena (actual season; CCL)

February 25: vs TBD in Desert Diamond Cup, Arizona

Oh. Well, this might explain why RBNY has been coy about promoting the second half of its preseason plans. If it does have a preseason game scheduled for the exact same day as the start of its real season, then there is a little squad juggling to be done to arrive at two separate rosters by February 22.

It has long seemed likely RBNY was looking at some sort of divided preseason, with preparation for CCL ultimately requiring the first team squad to break away from the players battling for fringe places on the MLS roster or USL contracts.

The Red Bulls will confirm the second half of their preseason plans in due course. If those plans are as expected, the team will also presumably explain how it plans to manage obligations that seem to include playing in Tucson and Harrison at the same time.