The New York Red Bulls looked like last year's team for much of the opening 44 minutes of Saturday's match. In the second half, they gave fans plenty of reasons to believe that things could be different this time around. After a slow start to the 2012 Major League Soccer campaign, the Red Bulls are now 2-0 in home games.
New York defeated the Montreal Impact 5-2 on Saturday afternoon. A recap and stat sheet for the contest can be found here.
2011 returns: The opponents earned a goal thanks to a defensive miscue. A strike that should have been stopped by the 'keeper finds the back of the net. I've seen this movie somewhere before. The visitors opened the scoring 18 minutes into play, when Markus Holgersson let the ball roll through his legs and into the penalty area. Holgersson was then unable to clear the ball away from danger, Sanna Nyassi took possession in the left portion of the box, and Nyassi buried a near-post strike to put Montreal up 1-0. One could argue that rookie goalkeeper Ryan Meara should have stopped the shot, but you can't blame the 'keeper too much when the back line completely falls apart.
Thierry Henry headed home an equalizer in the 28th minute, but Montreal went back ahead 2-1 just ten minutes later. This time, it was Meara who let his team down. Justin Mapp was given far too much time to work his way into the penalty area, but his sliding right-footed attempt wasn't struck with too much pace, and Meara had a clear view of the ball as it rolled toward the left post. Meara was just too slow to react, however, and the Impact seemed destined to take a 2-1 lead into the break.
The turning point: Was a controversial stoppage time penalty that Impact supporters will complain about for awhile. Your opinion on the matter is likely decided by which team you wanted to win on Saturday. Nobody can deny that Matteo Ferrari won the ball before making contact with Dax McCarty, but replays also showed that Ferrari scissored McCarty's legs and brought the Red Bulls player down to the ground. The referee immediately pointed to the spot once McCarty hit the ground, Kenny Cooper leveled the match in what was the final meaningful moment of the half, and the Red Bulls needed some guidance after what was largely an ugly 45 minutes of play.
A leader: I can't imagine there remain any Red Bulls supporters who don't want Thierry Henry as the captain of this club. After giving his teammates a lecture of sorts during the break, Henry put New York on his back and carried them to victory. Henry's second goal of the game came in the 55th minute, when he got possession at the top of the box and with his back facing goal. As we've seen him do many times, Henry turned, squared up and fired a strike that curled between two defenders and past goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts. Henry then jogged over to New York head coach Hans Backe and shook Backe's hand in the ultimate "don't worry, boss, I've got this" show of support.
Henry's day was hardly done. In the 72nd minute, Jan Gunnar Solli did well to get around the defender before making a run toward the right portion of the box. Solli found Henry, who was running across goal, and the living legend flicked a back heel for Mehdi Ballouchy, who tapped the ball past the unsuspecting Ricketts for New York's fourth tally. Go out of your way to see this goal, and to watch it multiple times. The field vision and talent that occurred in this couple of seconds must be witnessed to be fully appreciated.
The only thing left to finish was the hat-trick, which Henry accomplished just one minute before stoppage time. Ironically, it may have been the easiest goal he'll score all year. Kenny Cooper had a go from distance, and Ricketts couldn't hold onto the powerful strike. An unmarked Henry sprinted into the box after the rebound, and he then chipped the ball into the net to earn himself the first hat-trick of his MLS career.
Overall: New York were far from perfect, and they were playing an expansion side at home. The win is what matters most, and it's also worth noting that the 2011 Red Bulls would have, at absolute best, only earned a point in such a game. They'll be plenty of time to again praise the Henry-Cooper duo, or worry about both Rafael Marquez and Wilman Conde dealing with groin problems following the match. For now, I'll simply say this to sports fans in the New York area who haven't yet witnessed Thierry Henry live and in-person: You're missing quite a show.
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