The New York Red Bulls have one foot in the Eastern Conference final after a 2-0 win over D.C. United in the first leg of their conference semifinal tie. Thierry Henry put on a show, picking up assists on both goals as the Red Bulls dominated at home.
3 things from the Red Bulls’ 2-0 win over D.C. United
New York is headed to D.C. with a two-goal advantage.
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
The tie now moves to D.C., where top-seeded United will hope to turn things around. They will have to be much better, though, because New York could have won by four or five goals, and D.C. didn’t manage an away goal so it’s a steep uphill climb.
New York was the better side from the start and had a few chances to score, but it took until the 40th minute to break through. Bradley Wright-Phillips got free on the left and Henry delivered a sublime backheel right to him for the simple finish.
The Red Bulls continued to press in the second half and in the 73rd minute, they found the net again. This time Henry dropped back to the midfield line, spotted Peguy Luyindula running over the top and hit a perfect long ball. It was right onto Luyindula's foot, who just had to beat a helpless Bill Hamid to double the Red Bulls' lead.
Dax McCarty almost made it 3-0 late on, but he misfired on a free header and sent it wide of goal. The Red Bulls may come to regret that because at 2-0, United is still in the tie, but they have to be happy with their performance and the lead going to D.C.
New York Red Bulls: Robles, Eckersley, Olave, Sekagya, Miller, Alexander, McCarty, Sam, Luyindula, Henry, Wright-Phillips
Goals: Wright-Phillips 40’, Luyindula 73’
D.C. United: Hamid; Kemp, Birnbaum, Boswell, Korb; Pontius, Kitchen, Arnaud, DeLeon; Espindola, Johnson
3 things
1. Teams still can't stop Thierry Henry - There was no doubt who the best player on the pitch was. Thierry Henry ran the Red Bulls' attack and he did it from all over the pitch. His first assist was on a backheel from inside the box and his second was a long ball from deep that dropped right onto Peguy Luyindula's foot. He made plays from everywhere in between too. New York was the better side, and the rest of the team was good, but the 37-year-old Henry was far and away better than everyone else.
2. New York has way more top-end talent - D.C. was the East's best team in the regular season, but it was abundantly clear that the Red Bulls have the edge in top-end talent. Henry was the best player on the pitch, Bradley Wright-Phillips was the league's top goalscorer and even Jamison Olave was dominant. It was really clear that they were the better players and that's not entirely surprising either. D.C. beat teams with their depth and discipline all season, something they're going to need in the second leg, but they're also going to need some otherworldly performances to match the Red Bulls' best players.
3. Chris Rolfe may be the key in D.C. - Chris Rolfe was United's best attacking player for long stretches of the regular season, but he's been dealing with injuries and was only available off of the bench on Sunday. He clearly made an impact when he was subbed on, but D.C. needs more than 16 minutes from him in the second leg. They need at least an hour and they need him to be at his best.
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