Alonso Martinez scored 13 minutes into the match and assisted on Maxi Moralez’s insurance goal early in the second half as New York City FC handled the New York Red Bulls 2-0 on Saturday afternoon in a clash between the Big Apple’s two sides in Flushing, N.Y.
The latest rendition of the Hudson River Derby featured identical records for both teams but this one went to NYCFC (6-5-3, 21 points), which was the aggressor throughout and never let the Red Bulls off the deck.
NYCFC has earned five of its six wins at home this season, be it at Citi Field (which was the site of Saturday’s clash) or Yankee Stadium.
NYCFC goalkeeper Matt Freese had to make just one save to earn his sixth clean sheet of the season and second in a row.
Red Bulls keeper Carlos Coronel stopped the game’s first real scoring chance, denying NYCFC’s Julian Fernandez’s left footed shot from just outside the penalty area in the 11th minute.
Martínez got the home team on the scoreboard two minutes later with a blistering shot from outside the box that whistled past Coronel before burying itself in the upper left corner of the net. Justin Haak garnered the assist for the tally for the pass that got Martinez in the clear and onto his right foot.
Coronel denied Martinez a second first-half goal in the 19th minute by coming off of his line on a breakaway and smothering a shot at the edge of the box and then holding on to the rebound to assure Martinez did not get a chance to follow up. That was his second and final save.
Martinez had another chance in the 34th minute that was blocked by Red Bulls defender Sean Nealis near the goal mouth.
The Red Bulls (5-6-3, 18 points) finally put some pressure on Freese in the 48th minute but Dennis Gjengaar’s low-percentage shot (their only on target in the match) was easily stopped.
After outshooting the Red Bulls 9-4 in the first half and producing all three of the half’s shots on target, NYCFC added to the lead just five minutes after the break. This time Martinez set the table for the tally, finding Moralez with a nifty pass just in front of the goal and then stepping back to let his teammate punch his left-footed shot past Coronel to make it 2-0.
–Field Level Media
