The dust has settled on another exciting MLS weekend and there's little doubt that the New York Red Bulls' thrilling win over the Philadelphia Union was one of the games of the weekend, if not the year.
The highlights give us a sense of how such a game unfolded – Union take a shock lead, Andre Blake continues to be great, RBNY storm back, then it's Philly's turn again, and finally the smallest man on the field heads home a cathartic winning goal.
But what about the deep dive? With MLS LIVE, fans eager to re-live the game – or simply go beyond the highlights – can get a better idea of the how and why of this electric game thanks to the condensed match, which contains about 20 minutes worth of game action that shows build-ups, more key plays and some of the other details you may have missed on first viewing.
MLS LIVE subscribers can find the condensed highlights by signing into their account, selecting the game they want the watch and then, at the bottom and to the right of the video controls, toggling the 'Video' button (highlighted below) and selecting 'Condensed' instead of 'Full Game':
Here are several items you might've missed in the highlights, but can certainly catch in the condensed version of this game:
- Captain fantastic: Matt Doyle took a moment to wax poetic about RBNY captain Dax McCarty towards the end of his weekly round-up, and the condensed highlights offer a little deeper picture as to just how effective he is. Not only did he have his highlight-reel moments, he shows in the 20-minute recap that he's a consistently accurate passer who also epitomizes the Red Bulls' desire to win the ball back as soon as they turn it over. It's exactly what you want in a defensive midfielder and a vital piece of the team's high-pressing system, in which the defense will often need all the help it can get from further up the field.
- Blake's big game: You might've heard about Andre Blake's big game. You may have even seen his two stunning first-half saves in the highlight reel. But watching the extended version of the game illustrates just how strong the other aspects of his game are. In this game, his aggressiveness in coming off his line was particularly evident, which you can see in the condensed version of the game by how calmly he judges and gathers New York's frequent cross attempts, as well as his perfectly-timed tackle outside the area on Bradley Wright-Phillips at the 17:45 mark.
- Tempo, tempo, tempo: There have been higher scoring games this season and there have been better goals this season (though Wright-Phillips' goal is a thing of beauty). So looking at the scoreline and seeing four minutes worth of highlights, you might be wondering why this is being talked about as one of the games of the season. Watch the condensed game, and you may notice that it's not just the goals that make the game – even as the clock hits 70 minutes, you'll still see both teams going back-and-forth over the length of the field and consistently generating dangerous in one of the highest-tempo games we've seen in 2016.
