Once A Metro - New York Red Bulls on TourAccept no substituteshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/21683/metro-fave.jpg2016-01-08T11:10:01-05:00http://www.onceametro.com/rss/stream/104925952016-01-08T11:10:01-05:002016-01-08T11:10:01-05:00Bulls on Tour (Part 3): Spain
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<figcaption>Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Bradley and Pirlo left Serie A. So will we. On towards the future Ballon D'Or winner.</p> <p>We've been to <a target="_blank" href="http://www.onceametro.com/2016/1/6/9591068/new-york-red-bulls-ligue-1-on-tour">France</a>. We've been to <a target="_blank" href="http://www.onceametro.com/2016/1/7/10726506/new-york-red-bulls-on-tour-italys-serie-a">Italy</a>. Now we'll follow our boys into the land of <span>Lionel Messi</span> and <span>Cristiano Ronaldo</span> and analyze how the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.onceametro.com/">New York Red Bulls</a> would do if they were placed in La Liga based on their performance in the 2015 regular season.</p>
<p><span>Once again, we are using 1.76 ppg as the benchmark to compare RBNY's performance to a full season within La Liga. Like the two leagues before it, La Liga plays a 38-game schedule compared to MLS' 34-game one. So we need to use 67 points as our reference and compare that to</span> the average of the last five La Liga seasons (2010-11 through 2014-15). Can the Red Bulls reach Champions League if they played in Spain?</p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><b>Season</b></td>
<td><b>Red Bulls Finish</b></td>
<td><b>Team(s) 1 Spot Above</b></td>
<td><b>Team(s) 1 Spot Below</b></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2010-2011</td>
<td>4th Place</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/la-liga/teams/valencia" class="sbn-auto-link">Valencia</a> (71 pts)</td>
<td>Villareal (62 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2011-2012</td>
<td>3rd Place</td>
<td>
<a href="https://www.barcablaugranes.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Barcelona</a> (91 pts)</td>
<td>Valencia (61 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2012-2013</td>
<td>4th Place</td>
<td>Atletico Madrid (76 pts)</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/la-liga/teams/real-sociedad" class="sbn-auto-link">Real Sociedad</a> (66 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2013-2014</td>
<td>5th Place</td>
<td>
<a href="https://athletic.theoffside.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Athletic Bilbao</a> (70 pts)</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/la-liga/teams/sevilla" class="sbn-auto-link">Sevilla</a> FC (63 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2014-2015</td>
<td>6th Place</td>
<td>Sevilla FC (76 pts)</td>
<td>Villareal (60 pts)</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><br>The quick answer is, YES! Spain gets between four and five Champions League berths in a given year, so the Red Bulls would have made it almost every season. Within the league itself, they'd have little to no chance at surpassing Barcelona (with a staggering 93.6 average points over the last five seasons) or <a href="https://www.managingmadrid.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Real Madrid</a> (just as impressive: 91.2 points). The last three seasons, they wouldn't have been able to compete with Atletico Madrid either (81.3 points).</p>
<p>In La Liga, the Red Bulls would be equivalent to <b>Valencia </b>or<b> Sevilla FC</b>.</p>
<p>Valencia averaged 68.5 points per season and Sevilla had 65.7. Neither the Red Bulls nor the MLS All-Stars have ever faced off against a team in La Liga, so it would be hard to make a direct comparison.</p>
<p>Enjoy the weekend. Next stop: Germany's Bundesliga</p>
https://www.onceametro.com/2016/1/8/10734074/new-york-red-bulls-on-tour-spains-la-liga-rbnySteve Toto2016-01-07T11:10:01-05:002016-01-07T11:10:01-05:00Bulls on Tour (Part 2): Italy
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<figcaption>Jamie Squire/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Through the Loire Valley, over the Alps. Into the land of everyone's favorite food: Italy.</p> <p>Yesterday, we analyzed how the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.onceametro.com/">New York Red Bulls</a> would <a target="_blank" href="http://www.onceametro.com/2016/1/6/9591068/new-york-red-bulls-ligue-1-on-tour">perform if they were placed in Ligue 1</a> based in their performance in the 2015 regular season. In our second of five parts, we will now check out Serie A. I personally am not a fan of this league. Maybe it's the American in me; I can't stand all of the diving and drama. That said, it is a very good league, one of the best in Europe, with some fantastic teams.</p>
<p><span>To review, we will analyze RBNY's past season (1.76 ppg) and compare it to how a full season would look if they were placed in Serie A. Like Ligue 1, Serie A plays a 38-game schedule compared to MLS' 34-game one. Once again, we need to bump RBNY up to the 67-point reference and compare that to</span> the average of the last five Serie A seasons (2010-11 through 2014-15). Now, how would the Red Bulls have performed in Italy?</p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><b>Season</b></td>
<td><b>Red Bulls Finish</b></td>
<td><b>Team(s) 1 Spot Above</b></td>
<td><b>Team(s) 1 Spot Below</b></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2010-2011</td>
<td>4th Place</td>
<td>
<a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thesirenssong.com/">Napoli</a> (70 pts)</td>
<td>
<a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/serie-a/teams/udinese">Udinese</a> & <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/serie-a/teams/lazio">Lazio</a> (66 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2011-2012</td>
<td>3rd Place</td>
<td>
<a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://acmilan.theoffside.com/">AC Milan</a> (80 pts)</td>
<td>Udinese (64 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2012-2013</td>
<td>5th Place</td>
<td>
<a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.violanation.com/">Fiorentina</a> (70 pts)</td>
<td>Udinese (66 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2013-2014</td>
<td>4th Place</td>
<td>Napoli (78 pts)</td>
<td>Fiorentina (65 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2014-2015</td>
<td>4th Place</td>
<td>Lazio (69 pts)</td>
<td>Fiorentina (64 pts)</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><br>Pretty consistent results, averaging in a 4th place finish, which would once again put the Red Bulls on the borderline of either directly qualifying for Europa League or giving them the opportunity to qualify for Champions League via the play-off round. They would have a very difficult time to surpass <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/">Juventus</a> (83.6 ppg average) or AC Milan (78 ppg average) in the table, but due to fairly inconsistent finishes by most of their would-be opponents, the Red Bulls may have a good chance to do well each season in Serie A. Success? Probably.</p>
<p>In Serie A, the Red Bulls would be equivalent to <b>Udinese </b>or<b> Fiorentina</b>.</p>
<p>In the last two completed seasons, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.chiesaditotti.com/">AS Roma</a> (77.5 ppg average) finished second in the table to Juventus. On July 31, 2013, the <a href="http://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2013-07-31-mls-all-star-team-vs-as-roma/recap" target="_blank">MLS All-Stars lost to Michael Bradley's AS Roma 3-1</a> in Kansas City. <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lagconfidential.com/">LA Galaxy's</a> <span>Omar Gonzalez</span> scored in the 91st minute to avoid a shutout for MLS. The home side was captained by none other than RBNY striker, <span>Thierry Henry</span>.</p>
<p>Next stop: Spain's La Liga</p>
https://www.onceametro.com/2016/1/7/10726506/new-york-red-bulls-on-tour-italys-serie-aSteve Toto2016-01-06T11:10:02-05:002016-01-06T11:10:02-05:00Bulls on Tour (Part 1): France
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<figcaption>Paul Gilham/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Off-season analysis of the Red Bulls if they were to play in European leagues. First stop - France.</p> <p>Back in September, MLS Commissioner <a style="background-color: #ffffff;" target="_blank" href="http://sbisoccer.com/2015/09/insists-worlds-leagues">Don Garber was quoted as saying</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p><span>I do believe in 10 years’ time or less, people will think of us like Serie A, La Liga, and hopefully the way they think about the Premier League. If we continue to do things right and stay to our plan.</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Let's pretend a bit... It's the end of the 2025 season. The United States will be hosting the World Cup in only seven months. And to Garber's wish... MLS is a top tier league in the world. Of course our beloved <a href="https://www.onceametro.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">New York Red Bulls</a> have just won a second Supporter's Shield in three years (sound familiar?). The Red Bulls are just as good as any Big 5 European team. Or are they?</p>
<p>This past season (back to 2015), the Red Bulls won the Shield while obtaining 1.76 points per game (ppg). Let's keep that as our constant in this analysis and see where that would land them in Ligue 1. Ligue 1 plays a 38-game schedule compared to MLS' 34-game one. In order to rightsize MLS to Ligue 1, we have to extrapolate 1.76 ppg into 38 games. We come up with 67 points as our reference point.</p>
<p>Now we will compare 67 points and cross-reference that against the average of the last five Ligue 1 seasons (2011-12 through 2014-15). How would the Red Bulls have done with that point total in France?</p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><b>Season</b></td>
<td><b>Red Bulls Finish</b></td>
<td><b>Team 1 Spot Above</b></td>
<td><b>Team 1 Spot Below</b></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2010-2011</td>
<td>3rd Place</td>
<td>Marseille (68 pts)</td>
<td>Lyon (64 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2011-2012</td>
<td>4th Place</td>
<td>Lille (74 pts)</td>
<td>Lyon (64 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2012-2013</td>
<td>3rd Place (Tied)</td>
<td>Lyon (3rd, 67 pts)</td>
<td>Nice (64 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2013-2014</td>
<td>5th Place</td>
<td>St. Etienne (69 pts)</td>
<td>Lyon (61 pts)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2014-2015</td>
<td>6th Place</td>
<td>Marseille & St. Etienne (69 pts)</td>
<td>Bordeaux (63 pts)</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Over the past five years, it's been increasingly harder to perform in Ligue 1. Good thing we really aren't a French club. This would put the Red Bulls on the borderline of either directly qualifying for Europa League or giving them the opportunity to qualify for Champions League via the play-off round. They still are not ready for Paris Saint-Germain or AS Monaco in recent years, but they could consider it to be a successful season.</p>
<p>In Ligue 1, the Red Bulls would be equivalent to <b>Lyon </b>or<b> Marseille</b>.</p>
<p>RBNY did draw Lyon (67.2 ppg over the last five seasons) on <a href="http://www.newyorkredbulls.com/post/2013/07/17/red-bulls-tie-olympique-lyonnais-2-2-red-bull-arena" target="_blank">July 16, 2013, 2-2</a> in a club friendly match, so the comparison is fairly a strong one.</p>
<p>Next stop: Italy's Serie A</p>
https://www.onceametro.com/2016/1/6/9591068/new-york-red-bulls-ligue-1-on-tourSteve Toto