Omir Fernandez stunner breathes new life into New York Red Bulls as they climb from the bottom of the Eastern Conference with a 1-0 win over New York City FC in the Hudson River derby
What a difference a week has made for New York Red Bulls. Unpopular coach Gerhard Struber has been replaced by Troy Lesesne and they have beaten their two fierce rivals with goals from Omir Fernandez.
A stubborn performance of patience, perseverance and discipline against New York City FC paid off in the 76th minute as Fernandez scored for his second goal in as many games, firing a sublimely controlled attack past Luis Barraza and setting fire to the Red Bull Arena.
It’s three points that lift the Red Bulls from last place in the Eastern Conference and breathe new life into a team that just a week ago seemed desperately in a rut under Struber.
The Red Bulls had to play patiently and didn’t offer too much in attack before Fernandez struck, despite this being a derby. But New York City also struggled to scare the defense.
The aggression and energy pouring out of Red Bull’s south stand gave the team no impetus in a nervous first 20 minutes. Lesesne’s men, wisely perhaps, played the game, not the opportunity. They were at the bottom of the standings and needed time to find their way.
Omir Fernandez’ stunning strike gave New York Red Bulls a crucial win against NYCFC
Fernandez leads the festivities after his sensational goal late broke the deadlock
Omir Fernandez’s goals against DC United and now NYCFC have given Red Bulls new hope
Christian Casseres Jr controls the ball under the close supervision of NYCFC’s Matias Pellegrini
Red Bulls defender Andres Reyes tries to clear the ball while Tayvon Gray tries to block
The Red Bulls walked out to vociferous support from their fans ahead of the Hudson River derby
Passing was steady, if not on the slow side, and the nut’s first real effort came in the 19th minute when Cameron Harper’s low shot fell into the side netting.
Happy to let the Red Bulls have the ball, New York City invited the pressure of a team lacking confidence and flair before hitting the counter.
Gabriel Pereira patiently hugged the right wing to try and stretch the game, almost standing shoulder to shoulder at times with a troubled Lesesne as he guided his team through the first half.
In the 30th minute, Pereira’s patience was almost rewarded. New York took on a Red Bulls attack and jumped on the counter, Pereira fired in as the fourth attacker with plenty of space around him.
Talles Magno came in from the left and played a clever pass to Pereira whose sweeping left-footed strike from 25 yards looked destined to find its way into the top corner, only to clip the edge of Carlos Coronel’s post. It would have been a beautiful goal.
It was soon Magno’s chance to try his luck for himself. Another counter, but this time he resisted the urge to trap a teammate and fired himself. It was tame, right in the hands of Coronel and as much as New York offered throughout the game.
In the second half, the Red Bulls gained confidence as they attacked the South Stand. Substitute Winkleman Carmona tried his luck from range minutes after coming on as the clock struck 60, but Barraza easily found out.
However, he had no answer to the decisive blow. Andres Reyes scraped his slack into Fernandez’s feet and the stadium took a collective breath as he calmed himself to shoot.
But instead of letting go with full force, the Bronx-born forward sent his shot beautifully past Barraza’s reach, almost as if the lack of speed on the shot finally defeated him.
The first signs are that the 24-year-old is enjoying life under Lesesne following his US Open Cup goal against DC United this week. He will certainly continue to play a key role as this new Red Bulls team takes shape in the coming weeks.
From there, New York City had no answer – even when referee Ted Unkel bizarrely added nine minutes of stoppage time to the end of the game.