OK, so it may only be the "Mickey Mouse Cup" and the guy pictured above (Connor Chinn) may not even end up making the team at the end of the day, but damn it felt good to watch the Red Bulls actually win something last night after the utter misery of 2009. The victim again (this is getting to be a habit) was a poor Toronto FC. After the 5-0 tonking TFC suffered at Giants Stadium last season, you would expect them to have been up for this one. Nope. You just know that Preki tore them a new one in the changing room.
For the Red Bulls, Angel bagged a hat trick, the rookie class looked in form, Juan Agudelo showed why he must be signed, the passing was crisp and the organization was there. It's still early days, but it looks like Hans Backe has a plan and it is starting to show results.
We will have a full report from our man Homebrew later on, but here are a few observations:
- Tim Ream started again and would appear to be close to cementing a place at the back. His through ball to set up Angel's second goal was a thing of beauty. His selection was met with a lot of skepticism from certain quarters, but he may end up being one of the steals of the draft. Very steady at the back and his distribution is excellent.
- Angel limped off the pitch in the second half after a totally inappropriate tackle from Julian De Guzman but terrorized the TFC backline before he left. The official prognosis is a lower leg strain, which should bring a sigh of relief to RBNY fans who saw JPA leave the field clutching his knee.
- Red Bulls Reader talks with Angel about the De Guzman tackle and the Red Bulls' new found defensive solidity. Hans Backe offers his comments as well.
Edit: Click here for a nice slideshow of photos from the Disney tournament consolation match and last night's final.
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