New York City 3, Philadelphia 1

FT: New York City defeats Philly 3-1 and advances to the Eastern Conference Semifinals to play against Atlanta United in a two-legged series!

From the 10th minute on, the result was never in doubt. NYCFC played marginally better than they did on Sunday and made easy work of their Pennsylvania-based opponents en route to advancing in the playoffs for the first time ever. This was a satisfying one.

Five minutes of stoppage time!

83’: Philly gets one back to make it 3-1. It still looks like NYCFC are in control. Still, the anxiety levels in Yankee Stadium just got a bit higher.

Also, Villa comes off for Taty Castellanos.

78’: GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAALLLLLLL!!!! Maxi Moralez sends a sublime chip over the head of Blake to give NYCFC a three-goal cushion! That should be good enough to get NYCFC through.

Also, Amagat comes on for Herrera. But who cares about that?

75’: I can’t say that NYCFC are playing bad. But it isn’t looking pretty right now. Still, a 2-0 lead with less than fifteen minutes to go isn’t terrible.

64’: Ebenezer Ofori comes on for Tajouri-Shradi. It was a quality shift from the Libyan, who scored a wonder-goal to get things started in the 10th minute. City moves into a 4-4-2 with Villa and Maxi up top.

60’: NYCFC continue to look lackluster in the buildup. We saw something similar this Sunday where City appeared to click off in the second half. They might have won that one, but this is the playoffs. The U are gonna have that extra fire.

Philadelphia seem to have the fire early on in the second half. There haven’t been any goals conceded yet, but City could fall into trouble if they get complacent.

The second half is underway! Can NYCFC continue to dominate and ice the game?

HT: New York City leads Philly 2-0 by way of quality goals from Ismael Tajouri-Shradi and David Villa

There was rarely a moment where City were chasing the ball. The playmaking has been class, the defending has been great, and the shots are all dangerous. Few things were wrong with that half. If NYCFC can continue to apply the pressure and not let up, then they will advance.

25’: GOOOOOOOOOOAAAALLLLL!!! David Villa!

Matarrita sparks the counter-attack and finds Moralez, who lays the ball off to a lightly marked El Guaje who finishes side-netting! 2-0 NYCFC

NYCFC have done really well in the first 20 minutes. Izzy’s goal was absolutely stellar, as was Maxi’s pass. City controls the lion’s share of possession and is constantly looking threatening on the attack. Still, Philly has looked dangerous here and there. Can’t take the foot off the gas.

10’: GOOOOOOAAAALLLL!!! Ismael Tajouri-Shradi! Maxi Moralez sends a beautiful ping into Izzy’s path, and the Libyan winger first time’s it past Andre Blake. What a start. 1-0 NYCFC

1’: We’re off in the Bronx!

The Fox Sports 1 broadcast shows a pretty scarce crowd at Yankee Stadium before kickoff. Obviously, it’s Halloween. So the chances of a sell-out crowd was always slim. But this is embarrassing. I can’t help but wonder whether or not this will play a role in NYCFC’s performance tonight.

Rosters are out! Domé Torrent makes only one change by starting Ismael Tajouri-Shradi over Jesús Medina on the right wing. Other than that, the lineup remains the same from Sunday.

This is perhaps the strongest possible Starting XI NYCFC can currently have. Should Domé’s tactics be up to par, then City fans could be in for an absolute Halloween treat!