QUEENS, NY — New York City FC (NYCFC) coach Nick Cushing said there are positive signs to take ahead of the 2025 MLS season despite his side’s 2-0 defeat against city rivals New York Red Bulls in the Eastern Conference semifinals at Citi Field on Saturday night.
The Red Bulls claimed bragging rights in the first-ever postseason Hudson River Derby thanks to a magnificent strike from Felipe Carballo and a poked finish from Dante Vanzeir in the first half, with NYCFC missing a host of chances to force a way back into the contest.
Cushing was proud of his players’ fighting spirit and said NYCFC supporters should be proud of the team’s fight in the second half.
“If we’re going to lose, I want my team to lose that way,” Cushing said. “Fighting until the end, pushing the game, creating chances. It wasn’t our night tonight, but I will debate with anybody. We’ve got a foundation out there of a team that can be a top team.”
Cushing said his team “did enough” to win the game on Saturday night, stating that each of the two Red Bulls goals came out of nothing.
“Sometimes it’s just not your day. This is sport. I’d be proud of my team if I was a New York City supporter tonight,” he added. “I’d be disappointed, but I’ll be really proud of them.”
In a message to NYCFC fans, Cushing said there is plenty to be proud of for NYCFC supporters after an exciting season that saw the team force its way back into the playoffs after a disappointing end to the 2023 campaign.
“Be proud of the team,” Cushing said. “Be proud of the journey that the team went on. Be proud of how the team grew through the season. Be proud of how the team took the knocks and stayed humble enough to continue to work to stay together. We had some difficult results this year, but we had some really, really exciting ones, and we had some exceptional results.”
NYCFC defender Kevin O’Toole said the outcome of Saturday’s Hudson River Derby would make NYCFC hungry ahead of next season. However, he described Saturday’s defeat as a chance missed, with each of the top three seeds in the Eastern Conference already out of the MLS Cup Playoffs.
“We weren’t trying to look too far ahead because we have to play the one that’s in front of us,” O’Toole said. “But this one’s at home, so we miss out on a huge opportunity to take the win here and then move on and see what happens.”
Midfielder Keaton Parks said NYCFC will take “a lot of confidence” into the off-season after a strong campaign and said there is plenty of room for the team to grow for next season.
“We were doubted at the beginning of the season, and we showed what we were capable of as a young team,” Parks said. “I think we grew a lot this year. We came into the Playoffs against a good team(Cincinnati) who had a great season, and we knocked them out in three.
“So, we have a lot of positives we can take from this season and grow on for next season.”
Justin Haak said Saturday’s result was “really frustrating,” stating that NYCFC “didn’t play at all” in the first half and fell into the trap that Red Bulls had laid.
“(We) totally fell into what they were trying to do, just disrupt the game,” Haak continued. “Second half, we played our game, and we still created enough to get a result, or at least tie this game. But (we’re) extremely frustrated with how the game went.”
Haak said he is hoping to be a regular starter next season, whether at NYCFC or elsewhere. He added that it is difficult to take positives immediately after losing at the hands of their cross-city rivals.
“I feel like we should have been moving on in this round.”
