The New York Red Bulls host Toronto FC this Saturday in a pivotal match for both clubs. With a win, the Red Bulls can greatly increase their chances of making the playoffs, while a loss for Toronto would see their playoff hopes nearly diminished.
October 11 marks the third and final meeting between the clubs. In their prior matchups, the Red Bulls managed to save a 2-2 draw on June 27 at Red Bull Arena, and fell 2-0 on May 17 at BMO Field. New York is 10-5-5 all-time against Toronto, and 2-1-2 in their last five meetings.
New York Red Bulls head coach Mike Petke ahead of Toronto:
“These are the games that I’m excited to play, the players are excited to play. They have a lot of meaning behind them and a lot of implications. We’re at home, we’re very aware of Toronto, they’re going to come in and they’re going to come at us full force. This is a game that they need to get a result out of. Fortunately for us, it’s a game that we need to get a result out of as well so I’m very excited about this game.”
New York is coming off a 1-0 victory against Houston Dynamo at Red Bull Arena last weekend. Despite going down to 10-men after a late Tim Cahill red-card, RBNY clinched their ninth consecutive home win in their first match of the current three game homestand.
The Red Bulls are set to be without Tim Cahill (Australia) and Matt Miazga (United States U-23) due to international call-ups. Peguy Luyindula will also miss Saturday’s match due to suspension for a dangerous tackle in the Houston match.
Bradley Wright-Phillips’ Chase for 28 continues this weekend at Red Bull Arena, where he has scored 17 of his 24 goals. In their last matchup at RBA, Wright-Phillips scored an added time equalizer to steal a point in a 2-2 draw for the Red Bulls.
New York Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry on the importance of the final two home games:
“We have to get points…we have big games at home, we have to take care of business, but they’re important for me because we need to win them and they are against Toronto and Columbus so very important.”
For Toronto, Saturday’s match will be their third in eight days. On Wednesday they fell to Houston Dynamo 1-0 at home, and are 2-2-1 in their last five games. Leading goal scorer and star Designated Player Jermain Defoe has returned to the squad from injury and played his first full game in over six weeks on Wednesday.
Toronto FC have been shutout in their past two matches and first-year DP Gilberto will have to come up big if they want to leave RBA with a much needed win. The Brazilian is Toronto’s second highest scorer with seven goals and five assists.
Coverage of the match on October 11 at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. will begin at 7:00 p.m. (TV: Univision Deportes). MLSSoccer.com will carry MSG Networks' broadcast of the match live for free as the MLS Stream of the Week. For more information, visit ourBroadcast Update. For tips or further directions on how to get to the game, check out the Red Bull Arena Transportation HUB.
