The Red Bulls have never won any meaningful silverware in their tortuous, title-less 18-year history. They’ll try to change that Sunday night, when they host Chicago (5 p.m., MSG, UniMas) with the Supporters’ Shield on the line.
“I think it’s something this club deserves,” leading scorer Tim Cahill said of the Red Bulls, who lost the MLS Cup final five years ago and the US Open Cup final five years before that. They don’t plan on waiting five more years for another chance at a championship. “It’s a special team, it’s really grown together in such a short space of time, and the best thing is that it’s through sheer hard work.
“Yeah, we’ve had some great moments throughout the season but when you look at everything, not one player, it’s been a collective 23 players and the management staff working together to ride the wave of some difficult points throughout the season and then seeing it through. In the end, you get your rewards and hopefully it’s going to be this weekend.”
If Cahill is the Red Bulls’ heart, Jeff Larentowicz is Chicago’s; but he’ll miss Sunday’s tilt due to suspension. But the Fire still have ex-MetroStar Mike Magee, who arguably the frontrunner for league MVP and could put a dent in the Red Bulls’ Supporters’ Shield hopes if not marked closely.
The last time they played was back on April 7, when the Red Bulls’ 3-1 loss at Toyota Park leaving them just 1-3-2 and convincing rookie coach Mike Petke to dump his attacking 4-3-3 formation for a workmanlike 4-4-2. They’ve gone an MLS-best 15-6-6 since, and can clinch the Shield with a win.
But they could also clinch with a tie if Sporting KC ties or loses Saturday night vs. Philadelphia. And even if they earn the team’s first meaningful silverware in the club’s dusty trophy case, captain Thierry Henry says they don’t plan on stopping there.
“It will be more than amazing to win the Supporters’ Shield. But there’s something bigger than that after,’’ Henry said, referring to MLS Cup. “We’re going game-by-game. Obviously this one has something special at the end if we ever manage to win the game; that’s what we’re going to try to do. But we need to not forget also that we have to concentrate on the playoffs after that. That’s also important.
“It’s a step…If you win the Supporters Shield, it doesn’t mean you win the league. We saw that with San Jose last season. If we were in Europe and if we beat Chicago on Sunday, we’d party and go home. That’s not the case in MLS. We need to concentrate and make sure you can finish after. It’d be amazing because we haven’t done it here. But the goal is to win the MLS Cup: That’s always the goal.”