New York is blue again after NYCFC beats the Red Bulls in the Hudson River Derby | OneFootball

On Saturday afternoon, New York City FC welcomed the New York Red Bulls to Citi Field for the first Hudson River Derby of 2025. This is the 11th season of the derby, subsequently making this matchup the 10th anniversary of the battle of blue vs red. The home team wanted to desperately win, and thankfully, they did. The Queens team won 2-0 after another solid offensive performance.

This has been repeated numerous times since nothing has changed, but NYCFC has been struggling to score goals as of late. They have been held scoreless over their last three matches in all competitions, including the midweek draw against D.C. United. The Boys in Blue were clearly the better side offensively, but they could not capitalize on their chances.

NYCFC needed a spark and for someone to step up. They needed a hero to arrive in the Hudson River Derby and not let RBNY get their second win in a row against them.

Instead, NYCFC had two heroes show up: Alonso Martínez and Maxi Moralez. The two not only scored, but were the team’s best players in the fixture.

NYCFC beats the Red Bulls 2-0

The Red Bulls might have dominated the possession in the first half, but NYCFC outshot their rivals nine to four. As such, they picked up where they left off in the D.C. match with their offensive effort. And finally, the Pigeons found the back of the net.

Alonso Martínez opened up the scoring in the 13th minute. The Costa Rican, who had not scored since April 26, ended both his drought and NYCFC’s drought. He scored a golazo from outside the center of the box to put his team in front.

Martínez almost scored his second five minutes later. He had a great run with nobody in front of him and struck his shot. However, the Red Bulls goalkeeper, Carlos Coronel, came off his line to get the stop.

NYCFC continued to attack, and the striker had five of the nine first-half shots. He was a driving force of the Pigeons’ offensive effort, but the question entering halftime was whether they would continue the same in the second half. Plus, would others find the back of the net? Would the Boys in Blue finally score more than once for the first time in a long time?

Well, it helped that Coronel made a huge mistake, coming off his line and giving up the ball. Martínez pounced and regained possession before picking out Maxi Moralez. The Argentine, with ease, slid the ball into the goal, scoring his first of the season and NYCFC’s second of the afternoon.

Offensively, NYCFC continued to dominate with attacking sequences but reduced their shots. RBNY did get more into the match and became more threatening after Moralez’s goal, but the Boys in Blue outshot them in the end 12 to 11 in the end. They did not score again, though.

This was the first time NYCFC scored more than one goal in a game since the loss to Atlanta United FC. The second might have come thanks to a little luck, but scoring twice in the Hudson River Derby while defending well is a good sign for the Pigeons. Perhaps this is a sign of things to come.

Meanwhile, the Pigeons still have work to do in the final third. NYCFC should have scored another goal or two, but missed chances still plagued the team. The worries about the scoring will not go away, but at the very least, everyone can celebrate the 2-0 win.