The New York Red Bulls are getting their talisman back as Emil Forsberg has been deemed ready to play ahead of Saturday’s rivalry match against NYCFC at Red Bull Arena.
Head coach Sandro Schwarz confirmed on Thursday that the 32-year-old Swedish midfielder will return to the field after missing nearly four months with a lower-leg injury suffered during a June 8 friendly with his national team against Serbia.
“He will be ready,” the gaffer said.
Schwarz added that it is still uncertain whether Forsberg can start Saturday’s match or come off the bench but that a decision will be made within “the next 36 hours.”
Forsberg was the Red Bulls’ marquee signing last winter, jumping from New York’s sister club in Leipzig, which plays in Germany’s top flight, the Bundesliga. In 15 matches this season, he recorded six goals with four assists as the engine of his new club’s attack.
With Forsberg in the lineup as a starter, the Red Bulls had gone 7-4-3. In the matches without him, they are 3-10-3. It has been a particularly concerning run in MLS play as of late. Since June 8, New York has won two of 14 matches. In its last five games, it mustered three draws and two losses.
Despite the slump, the Red Bulls still possess the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference standings, though they are just three points ahead of NYCFC, which sits in seventh.
A win on Saturday against their rivals would clinch a 15th-straight playoff appearance, extending the longest active streak in North American sports.
Kick-off on Saturday night from Red Bull Arena is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
