To my fellow Jewish readers on Major League Soccer Talk, Happy Passover and to those who will be celebrating their egg hunts this coming Sunday, Happy Easter. For the last two weeks RBNY has had good fortune opening up their brand new home with a three goals to one victory against Santos FC & a one goal to nil victory over the Chicago Fire to start MLS play this season. But for the last three seasons this club has had plenty of problems getting victories away from Giants Stadium.

Under Bruce Arena in the 2007 season RBNY compiled a road record of three wins, four draws with eight losses for a combined thirteen points. You might think to yourself that’s not a good record, but when Juan Carlos Osorio had the last two seasons managing the club the only win on the road was at the Home Depot Center against the Los Angeles Galaxy on May 10th, 2008. A combined eight draws with twenty one losses for a total of eleven points. That is down right embarrassing.

So what is the challenge for Head Coach Hans Backe with this club to improve on their record away from the temple of football that is Red Bull Arena? Obviously it’s to play hard with heart and passion and to steal any form of points as much as possible & it starts with this Saturday’s road tilt that started the falling of dominos last year. Going to Qwest Field and facing the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Champions Seattle Sounders FC.

Last years season opener was the worst performance I have ever seen from this club either as Metro or RBNY. After a great start in the first ten minutes of the match the club lost their shape, will & spine. All the expectations after reaching the 2008 MLS Cup Final went right down the drain as they allowed Fredy Montero to work his magic and had his best match in his first MLS Season as he torched them for two goals & a helper on Brad Evans tally in the twenty-fifth minute.

After Montero sliced “n” diced thru the RBNY defense and scored in the eleventh minute, everything went sour for the club. Even though they had to play the second half, there was no life on the field turf for RBNY. A seventy-fifth minute rocket from Montero ended his fabulous start to his MLS career. That night Osorio had the club in 4-5-1 formation with Juan Pablo Angel as the loan striker. Maybe that would have worked during Angel’s River Plate days in Argentina, but he needed a strike partner & sadly Macoumba Kandji was used on the left flank in the midfield.

So if you ask me I believe a draw would be a good starting point for the clubs solutions on the road when they are playing the Sounders. That is a strong home field advantage as the city of Seattle will be singing and chanting for their club for the entire ninety minutes. But for central defender Mike Petke this is his outlook on the match.

“We have to find a way, no matter what. It doesn’t have to be pretty. It doesn’t have to be great soccer. We have to find a way to grind something out. We have to find a way to be effective in Seattle. Whether its sitting in or go on an all-out attack.”

(Quote was from Big Apple Soccer’s Michael Lewis)

Feuerstein’s Fire Radio Show

Soccer Agent to the Stars Eddie Rock of Libero
Goal Seattle Blogger David Faulk
NASL Segment: Florida Derby
Re-capping RBNY’s one goal victory over Chicago

2:00PM EST, 11:00AM PST: Friday, April 2nd

Next show this coming Tuesday, April 6th.