It's derby day in Major League Soccer as the latest round of match-ups begins with the Hudson River derby between New York City and Red Bull New York on Friday night.
Both teams occupy mid-table positions in the Eastern Conference standings, with New York City in eighth place with 32 points from 25 games, but the Red Bulls are only two points and two positions behind with 30 points from the same number of games.
This will be the third meeting between the teams this season, with City having won the first game 3-1 in the US Open Cup in April, but the first league derby between the teams ended in a 1-1 tie in May and this could be another close contest.
New York City vs. NY Red Bulls betting picks and predictions
Tie ML (+310)
New York City have been the top team in the Big Apple so far in this MLS season but there is not much to choose between their shaky recent form and the slightly improved results of Red Bull New York and the tie price looks to have value at +310 odds for Friday's big soccer game.
City picked up a much-needed 2-0 win over Real Salt Lake in its last match, but that brought an end to a poor run of five losses and three ties in eight MLS and Leagues Cup games.
It also has to be noted that a win over RSL should not be overvalued as they had gone eight games without a win themselves, so NYC won a game between two out-of-form teams.
The Red Bulls had a tougher start to the season and were regularly suffering from defensive breakdowns earlier in the year, giving up a lot of goals.
When they lost 3-1 to City in the Leagues Cup, they were in a particularly sloppy run at the back, allowing 13 goals in the space of just four games, but they have tightened up defensively of late and recorded two shutouts in their last three matches.
In between a goalless game with the Seattle Sounders and a 1-0 win over Columbus Crew last weekend, the Red Bulls lost 2-0 on the road at LAFC but that was a respectable scoreline as the Californian club are a more talented team and the Red Bulls restricted them to one goal until the sixth added minute at the end of the game.
It could be a close contest and the +310 odds for the tie appeal more than siding with either team to come out on top.
Under 2.5 goals (+150)
The MLS produces more goals than many other soccer competitions, but the latest Hudson River derby could be a tight encounter.
The teams' most recent clash finished 1-1, with the Red Bulls going ahead through Jorge Ruvalcaba after 44 minutes and City equalizing through Andres Perea seven minutes into the second half.
A repeat of that scoreline, or a narrow victory for either team in a low-scoring game would be no surprise with both teams coming off shutout wins.
Five of the Red Bulls' last six games have produced no more than two goals, while four of City's last five matches have gone under 2.5 goals.
Nicolas Fernandez first goalscorer (+450)
With a low-scoring contest anticipated, there may be more value to be found in the goalscorer markets by taking a player to score the first goal of the game than to score at any time.
A prime candidate is City's Nicolas Fernandez, who has scored 10 more goals than any other player on the team with 15 goals in 24 MLS appearances.
The Argentinian, who previously played in Spain for Elche, fired home the first goal of the game against Real Salt Lake last week and was also the first goalscorer in the recent 1-1 tie with Toronto.
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New York City vs. NY Red Bulls odds
New York City | -125 |
Tie | +310 |
New York Red Bulls | +290 |
New York City vs. NY Red Bulls player props
Nicolas Fernandez (New York City) | -105 |
Hannes Wolf (New York City) | +140 |
Talles Magno (New York City) | +160 |
Eric Choupo-Moting (NY Red Bulls) | +175 |
Agustin Ojeda (New York City) | +187 |
Julian Hall (NY Red Bulls) | +200 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
