New York City FC player ratings are determined by Hudson River Blue readers â here are your grades from NYCFCâs promising 1-1 draw with New England Revolution on the plastic grass at Gillette Stadium on Saturday, April 1, 2023.
Starting XI
Gabriel Segal (off 65â˛) â 5.5
It was a surprise debut for the young American at the much-discussed No 9 position following the reported departure of Thiago, who wasnât in the squad on Saturday in New England. The 21-year-old Segal logged 65 hard-fought minutes while showing the determination youâd expect from a debutant, but couldnât quite find the back of the net despite one clear-cut opportunity. HRB readers werenât overly impressed with the debut performance, however, dealing him a pretty harsh 5.5 for the young fella â welcome to the big leagues I guess? FotMob gave him a 6.6.
Talles Magno â 7.3
With Segalâs debut coming at center forward, Talles Magno was able to slot back into his more natural left-wing position, and to good effect. Talles Magno looked more his usual self, picking the ball up deep and out wide, only to drift gracefully inside on the dribble and create real problems for the New England defense. Funny enough, his goal came in the most No 9 way I can imagine, with a powerful header off of a well-placed Gabriel Pereira corner. Football is a funny game sometimes. Fotmob had him at a 7.8, the highest of any NYCFC player.
Santi RodrĂguez â 6.7
Another decent showing from Santi, but it wasnât quite the dominant performance that we know heâs capable of producing. His quality is there for all to see, and itâs just a matter of time before he really starts turning it on. His set pieces were impressive, and he was really unlucky to not have an assist under his belt after Thiago Martinsâs header was denied by Revs keeper Djordje Petrovic. Fotmob settled on a 7.1 rating for the Uruguayan.
MatĂas Pellegrini (off 65â) â 5.2
An interesting trend to note here is that yâall are not impressed with MatĂ this season whatsoever. Here are his ratings: 5.0 at Chicago Fire, 5.9 vs Inter Miami, 6.5 vs DC United, 3.6 at Houston Dynamo, and now 5.2 at NE Revolution. Hardly much love from the fans, but I get it â we need to see more from the Argentinian. Still, I would argue that his work rate and defensive contributions could provide more benefit to the team than meets the eye. Fotmob handed him a 6.6.
Keaton Parks (off 65â) â 5.6
Itâs another week of frustration from the fans regarding Keaton Parkâs performance, as they brought the hammer down again with a 5.5 rating. While Iâll admit heâs certainly not in top form, I did find this a bit harsh. But hey, this is a democracy weâre working with here and the people have spoken: they want more from KP55. FotMob had him at a much higher 7.1.
James Sands â 6.2
No matter how well I thought Sands played on the night, the fact that he coughed up the ball that led to the goal was always going to leave a dent in his rating. It was a poor moment on what I thought was a largely positive night for the Homegrown, but you have to also remember the goal-saving header he made in the first half, which kept things level at the time. So, maybe those two actions cancel each other out? FotMob had him at a 7.5.
Maxime Chanot â 6.9
After getting absolutely shelled by Portugal 6-0 on international duty with Luxembourg, Maxime was probably thrilled to be back with the City Boys and taking on the likes of Bobby Wood instead of Cristiano Ronaldo. And, I thought the veteran CB had a solid showing in Foxborough, winning a few hard challenges and displaying his usual confidence with the ball at his feet. Fotmob and HRB readers were pretty aligned here, with Fotmob giving Chanot a 7.1.
Thiago Martins â 6.9
It was a commanding performance from the Brazilian bruiser, who was impactful up and down the field in what was an almost Callens-like performance. He was unlucky not to score off of the Santi set piece, but certainly did everything right in the way he attacked the space, timed his leap, and kept his powerful header on-frame. Defensively, I thought he was immense, winning headers and chasing down opponents from behind to keep New Englandâs potent attack at bay for most of the evening. FotMob was also impressed, handing down a 7.6.
Mitja IleniÄ (off 69â) â 5.8
The word I would use to describe Mitjaâs outing is just âweirdâ. Firstly, he never looked fully fit out there from the get-go, and itâs been reported that he was playing through a knock he suffered on international duty with the Slovenian U19s. But with Tavon Gray also sidelined with injury, the kid had to go tough it out. Through these efforts to play through the pain, he almost scored an absolute banger of an own-goal when his defensive header arrowed straight into the top corner of Barrazaâs net, only for it all to be controversially ruled offside by VAR. He was subbed out soon after, and received a 7.0 for his efforts from Fotmob.
Braian CufrĂŠ (off 80â˛) â 5.9
Okay, we gotta start with the first thing people are going to remember about this performance, and thatâs the fact that CufrĂŠ got absolutely dropped by Brandon Bye on the dribble in the first half. Iâve heard of getting your ankles broken, but I actually think CufrĂŠ suffered some form of a literal ankle injury from this one as he awkwardly collapsed to the turf while Bye skipped past him. Other than the rough moment (that I will never mention again), CufrĂŠ played as solid as usual this season. His delivery is dangerous, and itâs only a matter of time before someone thumps one of his crosses home â maybe if we had a proper striker that would come more frequently. Fotmob gave him a 6.9.
Luis Barraza â 5.9
I still canât really tell if âLouis the Beastâ got a fingertip to the Carles Gil free-kick early in the second half, but if he did, that was certainly one of his best saves in an NYCFC jersey. He still doesnât seem to have won over all the fans quite yet, but I personally believe in the player and his game. The tools are all there. His technique is good, he plays with confidence, and from everything the coaching staff says about him, he seems to be a top professional all around. The conversations surrounding Matt Freese seem to get a bit quieter every weekâŚFotMob gave him a 6.4.
Substitutes
Richy Ledzema (on 65â) â 6.5
Ladezma got another solid run out there on Saturday, logging about 25 more minutes in his NYCFC account. The quality is there to see, but I still want to see him out there for a full 90 soon to see what he really has to offer. FotMob dished out a 6.4.
Gabriel Pereira (on 65â) â 6.4
It might have just been a 25-minute cameo, but Gabi put in one of the best NYCFC performances of the night. He provided the assist to Talles Magno with his inch-perfect corner kick, his passing rate was 100%, and he won all four of his ground duels and tackles. FotMob gave him a 7.5, good enough for fifth-best for all players from both teams.
Alfredo Morales (on 65â˛) â 5.5
Not a ton to speak on regarding this Alfredo cameo, but he looked solid enough out there. According to FotMob, he didnât misplace a single pass â which is a pretty cool stat I guess? But, I was hardly grabbed by his performance out there. Itâs hard to make that much of an impact in only 25 minutes in a double pivot I suppose? Fotmob had him at a 6.5.
Stephen Turnbull (on 69â˛) â 6.0
Some feel-good factor here seeing Turnbull get some burn in the first team after being called up from NYCFC II earlier this season. And, he did pretty well all things considered! The 25-year-old American was getting some love from NYCFC Twitter, which is the ultimate vote of confidence given how ruthless that space can be sometimesâŚFotmob had him at a healthy 6.5.
Kevin OâToole (on 80â) â 5.5
The wingback provides speed and danger off the bench, and helped NYCFC pin back New England for the final 10 minutes of regulation plus stoppage time. FotMob gave him a solid 6.0.
Player of the Match
Talles Magno
Who else? Heâs the goal scorer, and he looked dangerous all night. If he put away his earlier chance in the second half, weâd be talking about an even more impressive performance â maybe a âtake the game by the scruff of the neckâ performance, which we didnât quite see here. But, I still think that type of play is coming from Talles Magno. Remember, heâs still only 20âŚ
Head Coach
Nick Cushing â 6.1
Overall, it was a pretty decent showing from NYCFC against a very good New England side that still sit toward the top of the Eastern Conference â especially when you compare it to the brutal showing in Houston last week. Improvement week-over-week is a good sign, and grabbing a point on the road against a top team will usually be well welcomed. But I still want to see this side create more. The DC United game feels like a bit of an outlier, and when you take away that game NYCFC have just three goals in their other five matches, with one of those goals being an own goal and the other being from a set piece. Thatâs hardly sustainable production for a team that is used to putting up big numbers on the scoresheet.
Ismail Elfath (referee) â 6.8
You can probably stop the count now, because Iâm not sure weâre going to see a higher refereeing score this season in these rankings. And I totally agree with the readers here, I think Elfath controlled the game well across the board. Now, if it was us that had that goal ruled out for offside, I have a feeling this score wouldnât be as highâŚbut hey, thatâs football.
Callum Williams (Apple TV play-by-play) â 5.2
Is Callum Williams warming to NYCFC? In his third match covering the team, the silky-toned Williams felt more even-handed and fair. Itâs a marked improvement over the 4.7 you gave him for the DC United game, and the 4.6 you gave him for the Inter Miami game.
Jamie Watson (Apple TV analyst) â 5.1
The best sports analysts are enthusiastic about both teams, often at the same time â one side is making it work, the other isnât, and the trick is to amplify that success and failure in a way that makes the game come alive. Jamie Watson couldnât quite pull it off, instead opting for a flatness that might have been even-handed but that was also often dull. We hope he grows into the job.
