Just a few days after clinching a spot in the playoffs with a victory over the Chicago Fire at home, NYCFC headed to the Land of 10,000 Lakes to face Minnesota United in front of a sellout crowd at TCF Bank Stadium. The Loons, riding high after a win last week against the Portland Timbers, came out full of the confidence their home form has inspired and jumped on the opportunities early before holding off a spirited New York City side in the second half. Although they would eventually go down a man, Minnesota would hold strong for a 2-1 victory in the end on the back of a brace from Angelo Rodriguez on a chilly late September night.
"I didn’t think it was as bad as people said," Head Coach Adrian Heath said of the cold. "Maybe I’m getting used to it! I don’t think so. No, I didn’t think it was that bad tonight. And our first half performance warmed me up. I was really pleased with us in the first half. I thought our two front guys in the first half made the midfield four do their job, because of the set-up from the two front men. They took away their third midfield player from them. And I thought our pressing, and when to press, and where to press, was superb in the first half."
The game’s opening minutes saw the two sides — each lined up in a 4-2-3-1 formation — feeling each other out, testing for gaps in coverage or attention. That process allowed the Loons to get out on the front foot a bit, bossing some possession early and trying out things like having midfielders Miguel Ibarra and Alexi Gomez switching sides to keep NYCFC guessing.
By the 15-minute mark, things had evened out a bit, with each side getting opportunities but only NYCFC racking up any shots. Despite getting men free down the wings, Minnesota struggled initially with finding a final ball, at least until the 20th minute when Darwin Quintero sprung Ibarra for a run down the right wing. Ibarra held the ball up long enough for forward Angelo Rodriguez to slip off of NYCFC’s Sebastien Ibeagha and slip a header past goalkeeper Sean Johnson for a 1-0 Loons lead.
"Prior to that, I already had two that I was looking for [Angelo Rodriguez] and they didn’t go off," said Ibarra. "But then I had one clear one and I saw him making the second post run. So I put it in there and he had a great finish."
"Not only did he score," said Heath of Rodriguez. "Because goals, sometimes can mislead you, into people thinking someone has had a really good performance. But tonight, I thought he worked really, really hard. Got all the stuff. Looked dangerous. And he’s closing down from the front. Him and Darwin, I thought were a catalyst for everything we did behind that. And, you know, that’s something we’ve been working on with the front guys. So, that’s a pleasing part of the game."
The goal lit a bit of a fire under both teams, with the physicality of play bumping up a notch in its wake. With players hitting the turf left and right, NYCFC midfielder Alexander Ring earned a yellow card in the 21st minute for a cleats-up challenge against midfielder Collen Warner. In the 29th minute, Quintero nearly doubled the Loons lead after working himself free in the box following a sliding cross from defender Francisco Calvo. Controlling the ball, he snaked around several defenders before striking a shot that Johnson just managed to send over the endline for a corner kick that ultimately came to nothing.
NYCFC was doing its best to ramp up the offensive pressure, with Ismael Tajouri-Shradi sending a dangerous ball in from the left wing that came perilously close to picking out a streaking Jo Inge Berget to level the game in the 35th minute. But in the next minute, the visitors lost a lot of steam when a careless back pass from defender Ben Sweat to Johnson got picked off by Rodriguez. With Johnson well out of net, Rodriguez sidestepped past him and walked the ball into the back of the net to put MNUFC up 2-0 heading into the half.
"I think you prepare for that: to work, to score goals, to play well so that the team wins," said Rodriguez. "Fortunately, today that happened. That’s why I came, to demonstrate what I’ve done throughout my career. So, this is just beginning. It’s just about working and having confidence."
NYCFC came out of the break determined to get on the board. The visiting side displayed a much greater sense of urgency as it became clear that the home side were prepared to sit back a bit more, only looking to score if the right opportunity presented itself. That approach led to several opportunities for New York City in threatening positions as their pressure on the offensive end forced the Loons to make physical plays. Although midfielder Collen Warner was eventually sent off after his second yellow, the team as a whole kept their composure when NYCFC players couldn’t keep their feet.
New York City’s first best chance came in the 59th minute when midfielder Valentin Castellanos sent in a terrifying cross that found Berget stretching out in front of the face of goal for a header. Fortunately for the home side, the ball went into the turf and bounced all the way over the crossbar.
When Warner received his second yellow following a tackle that he probably should have stayed upright for in the 76th minute, the tenor of the game changed as Minnesota was forced to hold onto their two-goal lead with 10 men for the final 14 minutes of the game. Heath went to his bench, switching out Rodriguez for defender Eric Miller and shifting to a five-man backline to ward off the New York City attack. It worked a treat until the first minute of stoppage time when NYCFC managed to notch a gritty, determined goal after a cross into Castellanos that appeared to pull him offside ended with Rodney Wallace willing the ball into the back of the net from short range. After a considerable stoppage while the play was reviewed, the goal stood and NYCFC cut the lead in half, 2-1.
"I’d like to see it again," said Heath. "For some reason, the players are saying that the referee said something about, 'We have the wrong angles for VAR.' So, we’ve either got VAR or we haven’t, so I don’t really know. So, I’d like to see it again. One of our TV guys thought he was offside. I’ll have to see it again. But obviously, it was disappointing because, if you look at what Bobby [Shuttleworth] has had to do tonight, he hasn’t had to make, really, a lot of big saves. And that’s another win for us. That’s 11 wins now. Equal to last year’s total, let’s see where it takes us."
For the visitors, though, it was ultimately too little, too late as goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth — who was only forced to make two saves — swallowed up New York City’s last decent chance before sending the ball long and sealing the win for the Loons.
Next up for Minnesota United is a trip to the City of Brotherly Love to face the Philadelphia Union on Saturday, October 6. That game is set to kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT with pre-game coverage beginning at 6 p.m. on FOX Sports North Plus, streaming on FOX Sports Go and on MNUFC Radio on 1500 ESPN.
Lineups
Minnesota United FC Starting XI: GK Bobby Shuttleworth; D Jerome Thiesson, Michael Boxall, Brent Kallman, Francisco Calvo; M Collen Warner, Rasmus Schuller, Miguel Ibarra, Alexi Gomez (Harrison Heath 83’), Darwin Quintero; F Angelo Rodriguez (Eric Miller 79’)
MIN Unused Subs: GK Matt Lampson; D Wyatt Omsberg; M Ibson, Frantz Pangop; F Mason Toye
New York City FC: GK Sean Johnson; D Anton Tinnerholm, Sebastien Ibeagha, Alexander Callens, Ben Sweat (Ronald Matarrita 83’); M Eloi Amagat, Alexander Ring (Rodney Wallace 73’), Ebenezer Ofori, Valentin Castellanos; F Ismael Tajouri-Shradi, Jo Inge Berget (Jesus Medina 77’)
NYC Unused Subs: GK Brad Stuver; M Thomas McNamera, James Sands, Kwame Awuah
Match Events
Goals
20’ – Rodriguez (Ibarra, Quintero) – MIN
36’ – Rodriguez – MIN
90+1’ – Wallace (Castellanos) – NYC
Discipline
21’ – Ring (YC) – NYC
45+2’ – Warner (YC) – MIN
54’ – Calvo (YC) – MIN
76’ – Warner (2YC) – MIN
