D.C. United forward Chris Rolfe (18) celebrates a goal with teammates forward Jairo Arrieta (19) and defender Chris Korb (22). (Photo : Reuters)
Struggling team New York City FC (6-11-6, 24 points) will host league-leading DC United (13-7-5, 44 points) at the Yankee Stadium in New York on Thursday, August 13, as part of the 2015 Major League Soccer regular season.
NYCFC had been struggling lately as the team lost three of its last four games, including a 2-0 shellacking from neighbor MLS club New York Red Bulls last Saturday at the Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, as reported by SB Nation.
The third Hudson River Derby this season has had the same result as the previous two with the Bulls coming away as the clear winners. As a result, Jason Kreis' squad is now buried at eighth place in the Eastern Conference, four points behind Montreal Impact and Orlando City SC for the last playoff spot in the East.
This match against Western Conference leaders DCU is another tough one for NYCFC and they cannot afford to lose more games if they want to qualify for the postseason.
By contrast, Ben Olsen's men are having a superb season and is currently at the top of the league's pack with 44 points.
The Black-and-Red are on a three-game winning run, defeating the Philadelphia Union (3-2), Real Salt Lake (6-4), and Montreal Impact (1-0) in an impressive display of offensive prowess.
DCU stood firm on defense in their most recent game against the Impact as they held the Canadians goalless, as per NBC Sports Pro Soccer Talk.
Prediction: A 3-1 spanking by United. NYCFC will score a goal because of DCU's lax defense, but they will not be able to contain the firepower of the latter.
New York City FC starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Saunders; Iraola, Facey, Mena, Angelino; Jacobson, Pirlo; Diskerud, Lampard, McNamara; Villa
DC United starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Hamid; Korb, Boswell, Birnbaum, Kemp; DeLeon, Kitchen, Arnaud, Rolfe; Arrieta, Saborio
