“Houston, We Have a Problem,” came the post-game headline from Big Apple Soccer after the New York Red Bulls were thrashed, 4-0, by resurgent MLS champ Houston Dynamo. Once again, the Bulls were all over the place at the back, as the Dynamo repeatedly carved its way through midfield, playing balls in behind the Bulls’ defense.
New York is now a league-worst 1-4-1 in its last six games, allowing 16 goals, one of the worst stretches in Bruce Arena’s five-year career as an MLS coach. For Arena, the loss, the Bulls’ biggest of the season, was exacerbated by the poor debut of new defensive acquisition Kevin Goldthwaite. The Red Bulls are now in third place in the Eastern Conference, tied with Kansas City. The team is scoreless in its last two games.
After the match, Arena said hinted that there might be changes in the future. “I think you have to study, because we have too many players who played poorly, and that has to be accounted for,” he said. “You can’t ignore some of the performances on the field tonight. You can’t just throw it away.” That said, he added: “If we dwell on this game a whole lot, we’re not going to win another game this year.”