AfterFacts: NYvNYC, and Progress Report

Victory in Red Bull Arena has finally come! Exactly two and a half seasons after New York City FC played their first match, City knows what it feels like to win in Harrison. For this week’s AfterFacts, I decided to look at a progress report. City is seventeen thirty-fourths of the way into the season, which reduces down to one-half.

Yeah, I like the Men in Blazers. In fact, they just put out a podcast in which they talk about some EPL stuff, some USMNT stuff, and, of course, the (Ray) Hudson River Derby.

Anyway, because it is halfway through the 2017 campaign for NYCFC, it is only fitting that we look at how City is doing compared to the two previous years. So, let’s get into it!

First, let’s talk the match on Saturday.

1. This was the first Hudson River Derby (HRD) where New York City scored first in Red Bull Arena.

2. It also was the second time the Red Bulls were held goalless. In contrast, Red Bulls have held NYCFC goalless only twice in league play.

3. Is it safe to say that when Jack Harrison scores against Red Bulls, City wins? It’s a small sample size, so maybe it’s a bit early.

4. Some numbers from inonit.com: 97.35% chance of a playoff appearance (third in the east), 22.45% chance of winning the Shield (third in the league), and 17.36% chance of winning the Cup (second in the league, only 0.1% behind Toronto).

5. This derby match featured the second most yellow cards (6). The most (7) were given in the first ever match on May 11, 2015 (2-1 away loss) and on July 24, 2016 (4-1 away loss). The extra yellow cards in both were second yellows.

A few more facts to come with the graphs below. In these graphs, blue represents the 2015 season, orange the 2016, grey the 2017.

6. NYCFC is only one win away from matching the total number of wins from 2015 (10), and six wins away from matching 2016 total (15).

7. Look at how quickly City reached 30 points this year! The club had to way until match day 19 last year, and until match day 29 two years ago.

8. NYCFC has the third highest points per match in the league, behind Toronto FC and Chicago Fire.

9. The club is on pace for matching the total number of goals scored in 2016. The club is also trending towards conceding the least number of goals in a season (a possible 40, compared to 57 last year).

10. NYCFC’s goal differential is in double digits for the first time in cub history!

11. City still scores goals. The record now stands at 16 consecutive matches.

12. City is tied for fifth for least goals conceded. With the club’s history of poor defense, this may come as a surprise to many.

Improvements all over! I can say with confidence that NYCFC is by far a much better team than seasons past. I think we all knew it, but now we see the numbers to back up our claims. We will revisit these charts after match day 25 and also at the end of the season as a final report.

Momentum most likely will favor City on Thursday when they take on Minnesota United FC in the “Battle of the Birds”, The Pigeons vs The Loons. Let’s hope these numbers change for the better!

Oh! How can I forget! 13. Last meetings at RBA and Yankee Stadium were both NYCFC wins. NY is blue, and also NJ is blue!