By Juan Carlos Maygua
The MLS champions return to action in the CONCACAF Champions League. NYCFC made their second appearance in the competition thanks to the championship obtained last season. The “Boys In Blue” traveled to Costa Rica confident to obtain a good result ahead of the second leg on home soil.
Santos de Guapiles was the rival to beat. The local team wanted to use experience and home advantage to the fullest. The home team wanted to rewrite their most recent chapter in the competition. Despite losing 3 key players for the game, spirits were high. What better way to make a statement than beating the MLS champions right? Luckily, NYCFC made the necessary arrangements to avoid any surprises. Scrimmages in Florida and Mexico prior to the fixture definitely paid off in the end. However, the real test began as the ball rolled.
The rumors behind Valentin Castellanos and a transfer away from NYCFC have made headlines for months. Management looks to have Europe as the only destination for the Golden Boot winner. River Plate are monitoring Taty closely, despite having a recent offer rejected. The mutual interest suggested that Taty would be out of focus ahead of the match against Santos. Thankfully the rumors and speculations were put to rest (for now) after a great performance against Santos.
Castellanos wasted no time to send the message. A goal from the penalty spot in the 5th minute was enough to reassure he was committed to the team, and that the hunt for a second golden boot was beginning. The first 45 minutes also saw the base of NYCFC’s championship team. Santiago Rodriguez, Tayvon Gray, Maxi Moralez, Alexander Callens, and Talles Magno to name a few. A strong first half that concluded with NYCFC going up by 2 goals. Castellanos was once again the man in charge to put the ball in the back of the net in the 30th minute.
It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for NYCFC. The most critical part had to be the defensive line. Misplaced passes and possession losses near the box gave Santo’s opportunities to capitalize from those mistakes. Thankfully, Santos failed to take advantage of that. However, things would take a darker turn after Santiago Rodriguez was sent off with a red card in the 68th minute with a mistimed tackle. Could it have been a yellow? Yes, but I’m not the referee so that’s not up to me to decide.
The match definitely changed after that call; the team played defensively. But my general take is that Santiago Rodriguez will be the man pulling the strings in midfield from this point forward.
It was great to see Thiago Martins make his day view with the team. The defender is expected to fill the void left by James Sands. Keaton Parks also saw some minutes after recovering from his setback last season. NYCFC managed to obtain a positive result. The 2-0 victory over Santos de Guapiles gives the team room to manage the game back home in the second leg. I’m probably one of the few people who think NYCFC could have scored more goals, but it’s a good result regardless.
It’s great to be back with coverage for NYCFC. Hopefully you follow along in my second season as a journalist for the champions