Football Season Review

New York Red Bulls finished as the Eastern Conference champions for a second season running but once again stumbled in the playoffs to mark another decent campaign for Jesse Marsch's side. Having been the team to beat in a brilliant run to the Supporters' Shield triumph in the previous campaign, things seemed to be falling apart for Marsch as New York embarked on a disastrous start to the season which included just one win and six defeats in their opening seven games. Injuries and lack of form marked New York's initial weeks of the campaign but the team settled down, aided especially with the trade for Aurelien Collin which marked a turning point to the season and the Red Bulls hit top form as the season entered its mid-point, with a 7-0 thrashing of city rivals New York City FC the biggest highlight of the campaign. Bradley Wright-Phillips returned back to top form, the striker ended with 25 goals for the season, but it was Sascha Kljestan's form that that helped New York turn the corner with the midfielder dovetailing well with Wright-Phillips and Mike Grella upfront and ended the season with 16 assists which also ensured that he broke into the USA national squad. New York ended the regular season on a strong note and were unbeaten in their final 16 games to see off the challenge from New York City to finish at the top of the Eastern Conference standings but were beaten to the Supporters' Shield by FC Dallas. The Red Bulls had high hopes of making it to the MLS Cup for only the second time in their history but suffered defeats to Montreal Impact in both the legs of the Conference semifinals to bring a disappointing end to their campaign. Marsch will be looking for a better campaign next time around but not much change is needed with New York boasting of settled options in most areas of the field. An upgrade to Sal Zizzo would help out on the right side of the midfield where Alex Muyl has not been able to perform the same level as Grella and Kljestan, though he has a lot of potential. Daniel Royer did not have too many opportunities to impress but with a full pre-season under his belt, he could emerge as a key component of the starting lineup, leaving Marsch with the task of improving the depth ahead of next season.

Player of the Season: Sacha Kljestan