No, your eyes aren't deceiving you, the New York Red Bulls really have a five-man bench. No, the rules have not changed once the playoffs starts, that means they are dressing two fewer players than they are allowed to. I've been racking my brain trying to come up with a possible reason for not dressing the allowable number of players, but I'm coming up blank.
FC Dallas Vs. New York Red Bulls Live, MLS Cup Playoffs 2011: Hans Backe Using The Old 5 Guys On The Bench Trick
The only plausible theory I’ve heard is that Red Bulls coach Hans Backe really hates using his bench anyway, and this way he won’t be tempted to accidentally pick a player he didn’t intend to use. It seems crazy, but that seems as plausible a solution as any.
Backe has, of course, gained quite a reputation for his refusal to use his bench. According to the Sporting News' Brian Straus, the Red Bulls have used their full compliment of bench players just nine times all year. As a point of comparison, DC United has used all three subs 29 times, the Seattle Sounders have done it 27 times and Real Salt Lake has done it 26 times.
Even if Backe didn’t intend to use any other players, this just unnecessarily limits his options. Sure, it saves a few bucks on air travel, but is that really worth it?
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