When it rains, it pours.
While the sun did not shine at Citi Field in New York, the Colorado Rapids sure did in a bounce-back road outing against New York City FC. Just a week after dropping a road match against FC Cincinnati, the Rapids pitched a clean sheet to finish their road trip with a 2-0 win against one of the hottest teams in the MLS.
The two goal scorers for the Rapids were Rafael Navarro in the 16th minute and Cole Bassett in the 86th minute. Both goals perfectly aligned with the type of offense this team is meant to play, but this match will be remembered for being a clinic in team defending.
Here are three takeaways from the Rapids’ fifth win of the season, which matches their total from a year ago:
Quintessential Armas-ball goals
All offseason and through the early part of the campaign, coach Chris Armas wanted his team to look and feel a certain way: be dangerous in the press and in transition. Sunday afternoon, the Rapids scored one goal from each pillar of Armas’ system.
First was a wonderful counterattack spurred by Moïse Bombito, who won possession and found Kévin Cabral on the long ball. Cabral showed nice holdup play as he waited for an overlapping run from Bassett on the right side of NYCFC’s penalty box. Once he arrived, he put in a cross which wasn’t all that convincing, but Navarro chested it down from about 15 yards out, took a touch and rifled a shot to the side netting of the far post.
Then, with his team on the back foot holding onto a 1-0 lead by a thread late in the match, Bassett stole a ball from James Sands, found Calvin Harris, got it back and calmly tucked it into the bottom left corner on the first touch.
Omir Fernandez, who enjoyed his return home to New York and got his fifth start of the year, is starting to see the fruits of the process his former and current coach is implementing in the style of play.
“Obviously, this is a new project, but I think what’s really exciting is that we’re working really hard to play a certain system that has been new to a lot of players,” Fernandez said. “Obviously, it takes time, but now in recent games, you can see the qualities of the player we have, … who are getting more comfortable with the system.”
Bombito anchors massive defensive game
On a rainy day in New York, even when the downpour couldn’t put out some of the fires in the Rapids’ defensive third, Bombito came through with an extinguisher.
His biggest moment was near the end of the first half, after a nice through ball got Mounsef Bakrar in behind the Rapids’ defense. Winding up to shoot from less than 10 yards out, Bombito shot out of a rocket to slide and deny what may have been a surefire goal.
When the ball fizzled out for a corner, Bombito pumped his fist, screamed and received praise and high fives from Zack Steffen and his fellow defenders.
“My (assistant) coaches work hard with him,” Armas said. “And the culture in that back line is tremendous. He’s understanding how to become a real pro and some of the things to value. Then you add in Zack Steffen who keeps these guys on it.
“He plays with personality and he’s fast. We know teams in Europe are probably looking, but we tell him, ‘Hey, let’s get back to work.’ He’s a tremendous player.”
That said, the Rapids held their own against an NYCFC team that has shined in the past month, oftentimes in games exactly like Sunday’s when down a goal at home late. Not only did the Rapids fend NYCFC off, but they found a goal to put the game away.
Mihailovic’s absence and a change in formation
With Djordje Mihailovic out with a lingering heel injury sustained against FC Cincinnati last week, Armas moved away from his typical 4-2-3-1 and instead deployed a 4-4-2, with Darren Yapi earning his second start alongside Navarro up front.
Mihailovic was limited at practice in the past week and his status is still unknown, though his participation in training is encouraging.
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Armas has seen his team “flirt with two strikers” in training often, but has not often deviated from his typical formation until the circumstances encouraged him to. But on a small pitch drawn on a baseball field against a team he knew could spark any moment, he knew his team would have to be compact and effective defensively.
For the most part, the clean sheet is a good measure of success for the 4-4-2.
“We tried to keep them off balance on the night with a game plan that took time and space away around the pitch but also put pressure on certain players,” Armas said. “With the two strikers, we thought the way they attack with their fullbacks can leave them vulnerable in moments. And we created a few opportunities in the counterattack with the two strikers.”
The Rapids will return home to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park Saturday, May 11 for a rematch with the San Jose Earthquakes, who the Rapids defeated on the road earlier this season, 3-0. Since then, the Earthquakes have signed a Designated Player in Argentinian midfielder Hernán López for a club record $6 million.
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