February, 2015: Thierry Henry is gone. With Raul and the Cosmos, David Villa and NYCFC now on the scene, the Red Bulls’ monopoly on the New York market is done and dusted. And, to boot, the front office decided, to many fans’ chagrin, to fire long-time coach Mike Petke. So, it would seem, the season ahead for NYRB looks grim.
April 24, 2015: New York Red Bulls sit atop the Eastern Conference with 11 points, are playing some of the most attractive football we’ve seen from them, Henry-era or not, and are the last remaining undefeated franchise in MLS.
Um, what?
BWP + SK: A Winning Combination
With his team playing with verve, playing a beautiful, passing game reminiscent of—if admittedly not as sharp as—a Barcelona or an Arsenal, Mike Petke’s replacement, Jesse Marsch seems to have breathed new life into the New York Red Bulls. But how? As beloved as Thierry Henry was, and as legendary as he shall ever remain, his star power has perhaps made it easy for many to forget that it was not the famous striker from France, but rather Bradley Wright-Phillips who lead the team in scoring last season. Oh, and by the way: his 27 goals also lead the league in scoring. Henry’s retirement may cause a dip in jersey sales for the Red Bulls, but it certainly hasn’t hurt his team’s performance on the field.
The designated player signed by the Red Bulls this offseason in the wake of Henry’s departure may not be as sexy as the World Cup winning striker, but he’s certainly great value for money. Sacha Kljestan had fallen out of favor with his European club, RSC Anderlecht of Brussels, after having played for them in Belgium’s Jupiler League since 2010, earning himself more than 130 caps. If his mustachioed appearance is not as swoon-inducing as Henry’s wry smile, his presence on the pitch is still formidable. At 29, Kljestan has a bevy of experience behind him, but also has a lot left in the tank. Glitz, glamor and Jersey profits, he does not have; vision, technical skill, and a goal-poaching ability, however, those the American international possesses without a doubt.
But the Red Bulls won’t just benefit from Sacha Kljestan’s vision and technical skill; they’ll benefit from his maturity, and his winning mentality as well. In the post-match press conference following NYRB’s 2-0 victory over San Jose last Friday—in which Kljestan scored his first goal for New York—he was a combination of fiery and measured, motivated by the skeptics but not too quick to gloat at their expense: “I don’t want us to get [ahead] of ourselves. A lot of you guys didn’t think we’d be good this season. A lot of you guys didn’t think we would make the playoffs… We’re gonna continue playing this season with a chip on our shoulder. It’s always nice to get some recognition, and I think people around the league are starting to respect us pretty quickly, with our good results. But every time you play a game, you start back at 0-0.”
Kljestan’s experience is invaluable. With RSC Anderlecht, he won three league titles, consecutively, in 2012, 2013, and 2014; consequently, Anderlecht competed in the UEFA Champion’s League, arguably the world’s most illustrious club competition. Kljestan doesn’t just have experience playing in front of packed European crowds. More importantly, he has experience winning titles in front of them, and the winning mentality garnered by back-to-back successful title defenses will be a great boon to the Red Bull’s locker room this season. With his leadership, if Bradley Wright-Phillips can recreate even a portion of his goals from last season, the Red Bulls will have a potentially deadly creator-striker partnership in Kljestan and Wright-Phillips.
Can NYRB Keep it Up?
After having spent nearly a full month away from home, maintaining their unbeaten record throughout, the Red Bulls will play three of their next four matches at their own arena—but they’ll be hoping their winning ways might garner greater support. Although the Red Bull Arena’s acoustics can help the voices of those in attendance ring out, the Red Bulls will be hoping to better their take at the gate in the coming weeks; thus far, they’ve only averaged about half-capacity for each of their two home games.
The firing of Mike Petke is a chief, perhaps the chief cause of the Red Bulls loss of fan base. Having begun his career with the New York Metrostars, the Red Bulls antecedent club, he was (re-)signed by the Red Bulls in 2010 for a swan song season, one in which he scored the second ever goal at the Red Bulls Arena in the team’s first home match there. After stepping off the field, he stepped into the manager’s technical area, serving first as an assistant in 2011, and then as the team’s head coach during the 2013 campaign. In addition to having been a longtime former player, and a sort of prodigal son returned, Petke’s record at NYRB was anything but poor; he won the team the Supporters Shield (what would be the league title were there not playoffs) in 2013, and guided his side to the Eastern Conference Championships last season.
Then he was canned.
It’s understandable that longtime Red Bulls fans are unhappy with the decision; firing a successful coach is bound to be unpopular in itself, but add in that Petke was a longtime player for his club as well, and backlash from supporters is guaranteed. He was loyal to the club, so his firing must seem a gesture from the front office that flies in the face of club loyalty. If the club’s ownership doesn’t repay the loyalty of its staff, should supporters be expected to abide by the concept in their support of the team?
Yup.
Like it or lump it, we’re not in charge of the football clubs to which we yoke our emotions. Critique the management, but back your club; call out what you believe to be decisions at odds with the values that should be guiding your team, but show up to support the players who comprise it. Red Bulls fans angered by the firing of Petke can look to Old Trafford for an example, in the form of green and gold anti-Glazer scarf-clad supporters. Every fan wearing green and gold in Old Trafford on match day is making a dual statement with their presence: Love the Club, Hate the Management.
Critiquing how your club is being run, or even the culture of global football more broadly, is a fantastic thing to do. As with most of life, being a football supporter is less fulfilling when done uncritically. But the best place to be critical of your club, the best place to voice your dissent, is behind a scarf, a shirt, a banner, a tifo—in the stands.. If the Red Bulls are to make the most of their upcoming home stand, they’ll want all of their fans—not just the complacent ones—behind them.