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For the first time in club history, the Red Bulls will travel to The Land of 10,000 Lakes for a showdown with MLS newcomers Minnesota United.
Heading into this match, the two teams could hardly be any more different in their recent forms. Between MLS and the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the Red Bulls have won three straight road games and are on a four-game winning streak. The Loons, meanwhile, have been shut out of their last two home games and have not won a match in over a month.
As a result, it isn't too difficult to see why some oddsmakers made the Red Bulls a rare away-team favorite in this one.
Nonetheless, the Red Bulls cannot afford to let their recent success go to their head - especially with Kemar Lawrence and Aurelien Collin still unavailable to shore up the defense.
Here is the RBNY predicted XI vs Minnesota United:
GK Luis Robles
DF/WB Michael Murillo - With Murillo back from the Gold Cup and Connor Lade back on the injury report, Murillo will probably find himself back on the field a bit sooner than expected.
DF Sal Zizzo
DF Damien Perrinelle - It turns Aurelien Collin wasn't as close to returning to action as we once thought, which means plenty more minutes for Perrinelle.
DF Aaron Long
DF/WB Tyler Adams
DM Felipe
AM Sean Davis - Is it possible Davis has already supplanted Alex Muyl as the starting left attacking midfielder?
AM Sacha Kljestan
AM Daniel Royer
FW Bradley Wright-Phillips - Though Gonzalo Veron has played lights out recently, BWP has four goals in his last three away matches.
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With a game in hand over 7th place Columbus and two games in hand over 6th place Orlando City in the Eastern Conference standings, a strong result against the Loons on Saturday will go a long way towards putting some serious distance between them and the red line.
It's crucial that the Red Bulls finish July strongly because early August promises a fairly brutal opening stretch.
What do you think?