NYCFC was home away from home to host the first leg of the CCL quarterfinals. The Boys in Blue came off a solid performance in the round of 16 and were looking to continue that streak. However, recent results in the domestic front challenged that possibility. A defeat and a scoreless draw definitely gave the rival a major boost ahead of the match. Comunicaciones definitely took advantage of the opportunity and were determined to show that the victory against the Colorado Rapids was not just luck. In contrast to NYCFC, the Guatemalans followed that with two more victories back home. Two teams with completely different realities met in Connecticut, home-field advantage was with NYCFC, right? At least that’s what we thought.
Fighting until the end
I hosted a Twitter Space prior to the match to discuss what we could expect from the team. From Jasson’s appearance in the starting XI to how many goals we expected to score, it was all optimism left and right. But as kickoff neared Post 90 Podcast gave an observation that would set the tone of the game, “It feels like an away game, but we’re going to win 3-1”. I doubted that at first. We were in NY, the turnout was going to be low given the time and distance from the city. But NYCFC was going to outnumber Comunicaciones in terms of supporters, and the idea of giving up an away goal was difficult to imagine.
Comunicaciones meant business and they went all out from the start. They forced a turnover within the first minute of play, that chance alone told me it was going to be a difficult night. The Boys in Blue managed to gain control after the early mistake, Talles Magno and Santiago Rodriguez connected once again to create the majority of chances in the first half. In fact, the first goal happened because of that connection, but VAR ruled offside from Talles Magno in that play. Comunicaciones answered back shortly after with a shot by Kevin Lopez that troubled Sean Johnson. The match saw both teams trading blows, but NYCFC stroke first. Andres Jasson was able to win the ball back in the edge of the box, leaving Santi with enough room to cross the ball. Castellanos followed the play and was able to anticipate the defenders to header the ball into the net and put NYCFC in front. The goal was enough to send the Boys in Blue with a lead to halftime. On paper, a result forced Comunicaciones to go on defense for the second half. Something that was far from true once again.
Comunicaciones didn’t stick to the game plan and resumed their attacking style in the second half. In fact, they turned the tide in their favor thanks to the support behind them. The team combined that and doubled their physical style of play. The high pressing that they enforced pushed NYCFC into their own half and isolated Maxi, cutting the connection with Talles Magno and Castellanos. The formula would see results for Comunicaciones in the 60th minute. Manuel Gamboa took advantage of a series of rebounds after a corner kick to score the equalizer. The goal not only confirmed the momentum for Comunicaciones, it also meant that they were going to play the second leg with the away goal advantage. A result that was definitely not in the budget, but luckily it forced a reaction from NYCFC.
It only took 5 minutes for the reaction to occur. A true a worthy golazo finished off by “El frasquito” Moralez after a three-touch buildup play. The Magician connected well with Talles Magno and Taty to put NYCFC up on the scoreboard once again. The goal would be lethal for Comunicaciones because only 6 minutes after (71st minute) Santiago Rodriguez sealed the game after a well-executed counter-attack saw him score the third and final goal of the game. The Boys in Blue will face the second leg with a comfortable advantage, but the job is far from done. Huge props to Comunicaciones for playing with heart and fighting until the end. Not many go head to head in an international tournament.
I end this column by praising the supporter turnout for Comunicaciones. In light of recent events that had tragic consequences, it was nice to see a fanbase unite as one. Hearing “Si Se Puede” echo through the stadium gave me goosebumps. Comunicaciones might be one of the few teams who can brag about playing two games with home advantage.
NYCFC returns to the Bronx on Saturday for their home-opening match