HARRISON, N.J. – They weren’t given a shot, but they didn’t mind one bit.
After most of their starters logged heavy minutes in the US Open Cup just a day earlier, New York Red Bulls head coach Jesse Marsch was forced to scramble to find enough fit bodies to field a team to face Chelsea on Wednesday night.
The result: a Red Bulls side that looked more like the team the plays in USL rather than its MLS counterpart. Laded with reserves and third-division regulars, the prospects of going up against one of the world’s best teams didn’t seem all that promising. With nothing to lose, they took to the pitch and turned some heads in the process, defeating the defending English Premier League champions 4-2 at Red Bull Arena.
“There’s no reason that those guys are any better than us,” said fearless 16-year-old Red Bulls II defender Tyler Adams after the game. “They’re on the same field as us and we’re playing against each other, so there’s no reason to be scared. When we’re on the field we have a job to do. We did our job, that’s it.”
Marsch singled out the teenager before the match as a player who would see some significant minutes against the reigning EPL winners, and Adams did not disappoint. His header in the 69th minute proved to the be difference on the night, leading a scrappy young side to a shocking win.
“I’ve played with a lot of those guys already with the USL team,” said Red Bulls MLS midfielder Sean Davis, who was named man of the match. “They’re a great group of guys and I was really looking forward to it. Maybe it wasn’t our top team because we had a lot of guys play in the Open Cup, but we still believed in each other and Jesse believed in us.”
Recording a brace on the night, Davis’ sterling performance propelled the makeshift Red Bulls to an impressive victory over one of the world’s elite. After suffering a crushing shootout defeat to the Philadelphia Union just the night before, the feel-good vibes emanating from the New York locker room leave many with reasons to be hopeful for what’s to come.
“We’ve talked a lot about what the future of this club will be and that it will involve the investment in the youth, the investment in the academy,” Marsch told reporters. “Tonight we got a chance to showcase a lot of the hard work that’s been put in. The kids go out and play fearless and they go after the game. As the game goes on they gain confidence and end up getting an incredible result against an incredible team. Obviously, a big day for our club.”
