A year after enduring the worst season in the club's history, the New York Red Bulls have completed an incredible turnaround after beating New England on Thursday to clinch first place in the Eastern Conference.
The Red Bulls posted a 2-0 win against the Revolution on Thursday night to secure first place in the Eastern Conference and the No. 1 seed in the East playoffs. Dane Richards and Joel Lindpere provided the scores on a night when New England provided little resistance.
Richards scored his fifth goal of the season after racing onto a perfect pass from Juan Pablo Angel and blasting a right-footed shot. Lindpere finished the match with a stoppage-time insurance goal.
Thierry Henry missed the match with a knee injury, but head coach Hans Backe said after the match that he expected Henry to be back in training ahead of the first round of the MLS Playoffs.
Richards and Lindpere picked up the slack, outplaying their Revs counterparts and finishing off a pair of impressive regular seasons.
Backe used the match to give Jeremy Hall a look at right back and the second-year defender did well playing in place of Chris Albright.
The victory completed the club's second worst-to-first turnaround. The 2000 New York-New Jersey MetroStars finished first in the Eastern Division a year after the club posted a nightmare 7-25 season.
The night included a ceremony honoring long-time Red Bulls Mike Petke and Seth Stammler, who are both retiring at the end of the season.
Here are the highlights:
What did you think of last night's match? Can you see the Red Bulls building on the win heading into the playoffs? Looking forward to seeing New England's roster completely overhauled?
Share your thoughts below.