RBNY player ratings vs NYC FC - Royer hurt as Red Bulls get edged out by NYC FC

For the first time in three years, the Red Bulls have lost the Hudson River Derby in a 3-2 defeat. It was a back-and-forth contest that saw three lead changes and five goals - three from David Villa and two from Bradley Wright-Phillips.

Things seemed destined to play out poorly for the Red Bulls early as Daniel Royer suffered a scary-looking knee injury before the 15' mark. The game went to halftime tied 1-1 as Villa and BWP tallied for their teams.

BWP would get his second goal of the game early in the second, but David Villa would not be denied as he scored a screamer from open play and then on a penalty after a Sal Zizzo kick to the face.

The Red Bulls collapse was complete as Sal Zizzo earned a red card minutes later, and with that the Red Bulls lost the Hudson River Derby for the first time.

Here are the RBNY player ratings vs NYC FC:

Luis Robles - 4

It may be a day worth forgetting for Robles, but he will return to Red Bull Arena as the club's all-time leader in minutes played.

Sal Zizzo - 1

He saved a sure goal in the first half, which is why he gets the 1, but it was all downhill from there. Many Red Bulls fans actually take comfort in the fact he got a red card and will miss the next game. Go figure.

Kemar Lawrence - 6

Aaron Long - 3

David Villa schooled Long, plain and simple.

Damien Perrinelle - 4

Felipe - 6

Another strong acting performance from Felipe earned a yellow card foul to NYC FC.

Tyler Adams - 7

AmeriKante's assist to Bradley Wright-Phillips was a thing of beauty.

Sean Davis - 7

Sacha Kljestan - 8

It was great to see Kljestan show up with plenty of energy for this one. And he notched another assist.

Daniel Royer - n/a

Royer left the game with an injury too early to make a difference. Hopefully it's just a sprain and not something season-ending.

Bradley Wright-Phillips - 8 (Man of the Match)

BWP is the Gargamel of MLS.

Subs:

Alex Muyl - 3

Aside from a couple of drawn fouls and a few passes, Muyl brought nothing to the table despite playing most of the game.

Michael Murillo - 6

Well, the team didn't concede a fourth goal after Murillo came on, so there's that.

Gonzalo Veron - 5

Too little, too late. Veron needs way more than 12 minutes to make an impact.

*

There were plenty of shades of 2016 in this game with this performance, and Jesse Marsch's decision to play Damien Perrinelle over Michael Murillo and Fidel Escobar was a real head-scratcher. Nonetheless, his tactics worked well-enough to keep NYC FC on their toes - certainly in a much better way than in the first MLS meeting.

It's no comfort at all, but this certainly seemed like the best losing effort the Red Bulls have put forth this season. Yes the team lost significant ground in the MLS standings because of this result, but the Red Bulls have plenty more games against Conference Rivals to prove they're a real contender - and a rubber match against NYC FC at Red Bull Arena later this month to cut down on the lead.

Far more concerning though is the injury to Daniel Royer. Hopefully Muhamed Keita is all he's cracked up to be, because that injury looked like it might shelve Royer for a good while.