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Well, the bad news is that the Red Bulls are going to have to take the field against an MLS bottom-feeder - which based on their record so far this year is pretty much a guaranteed loss for RBNY. When they take on the Philadelphia Union this Sunday they'll be facing pretty much the exact same squad that ran them out of the building the last time these teams met.
The good news is that Jesse Marsch should have many more options for the back line than he's had to choose from in recent weeks. That should mean something close to a first-choice defensive unit for this game: Aurelien Collin looked sharp as ever in his return from injury against NYCFC this past Wednesday; Michael Murillo and Kemar Lawrence will be back in the lineup after returning from international duty; Aaron Long remains as reliable a center-back as there is to be found in MLS.
Several weeks back the Red Bulls were the team that ended the Union's winless run, and wouldn't you know it - the Union is on a two-game winless run at the moment.
Here is the RBNY predicted XI at Philadelphia:
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Luis Robles - The Iron Man's streak resumes in Chester
Kemar Lawrence - Assuming that the illness he picked up while on international duty clears up, Lawrence will be back
Aaron Long
Aurelien Collin
Michael Murillo - Sal Zizzo had a decent game against NYC FC and might be working his way back into Marsch's good graces. But Murillo has shown far more consistency, even on his bad days.
Tyler "AmeriKante" Adams
Felipe
Daniel Royer - Even if Mike Grella wasn't hurt, I think Royer may have taken
Sacha Kljestan
Alex Muyl
Bradley Wright-Phillips
*
There certainly is a chance Jesse Marsch approaches this match cautiously with a mega-match against NYC FC coming on Saturday, followed by a re-match against Philadelphia in the U.S. Open Cup. But if this team wants a confidence booster heading into the second half of the season, it needs to start getting results on the road.
What do you think?