New York City FC just played their home opener, coming away with a nervy 2-1 win vs. Orlando City SC at Yankee Stadium in front of an announced crowd of 25,846. NYCFC endured an Orlando equalizer and endured going down a player when Kevin O'Toole got sent off in the 86th minute.
New York City extended its great record at home when facing Orlando, and when playing their home opener. This was also Pascal Jansen's first win as NYCFC Head Coach, so there was a lot going on out there. Here are four takeaways from the first three points earned by New York City FC during the 2025 MLS season.
1. Wolf: Out, in, then game-winning goal.
Hannes Wolf looked like he was dropped from the Starting XI for this game, not in the initial lineup released an hour before kickoff. He'd had a very quiet start to the season, not looking threatening through the first two games and extending a lengthy personal streak of not adding goals or assists. Wolf entered the Orlando match with zero goals and one assist in his previous 19 appearances in all competitions for NYCFC, not a huge return for a player currently earning one of the highest salaries on NYCFC.
Something changed between the starting lineup's release and warmups, as Agustín Ojeda was scratched from the Starting XI in favor of Wolf. Wolf played as a left-winger instead of on his usual right side of the attack and ended up breaking his goalless streak in the second half, nodding the ball down into an empty net following a short pass from Julián Fernández after Orlando goalkeeper Pedro Gallese made a mess of a rebound.
Wolf hadn't exactly looked great in this game prior to scoring the goal, still sometimes struggling with his first touch and struggling to get on the same page as his attacking teammates. Scoring the game-winning goal and breaking his personal goalless drought should lift a weight off the Austrian attacker's shoulders.
2. A child leads them.
Jonathan Shore got his first MLS start in this game and what a first impression he continues to make in the earliest days of his MLS career. Shore was solid in his debut when subbing on at halftime in the season opener vs. Inter Miami CF, but he was in from the jump for the home opener and looked like he fit right in as a starter in MLS.
He was one of New York City's best players on the night, unafraid to go in for tackles and coming out from duels with possession multiple times. His passing was crisp and progressive – he seemed to be doing the type of work Keaton Parks does to link play from deeper in the midfield to the forward attacking players.
The NYCFC midfield is still in need of figuring out post-James Sands, especially as Justin Haak continues to yo-yo between the midfield and central defense and as Andrés Perea struggles with injuries. Shore has gotten a huge opportunity handed to him by new coach Pascal Jansen and he's been taking advantage of it early on in 2025.
3. The best backline?
This was the first time New York City used this combination of four players in defense – Kevin O'Toole, Justin Haak, Thiago Martins, and Mitja Ilenič – since Pascal Jansen has been in charge. This was the same defensive back four when the 2024 NYCFC season ended at Citi Field in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, and they were reunited once again with Birk Risa out of the lineup due to an illness. Thiago Martins was back in to start as he gets further removed from the injury he suffered during preseason and looked to be past any limitations he entered the season with.
They didn't suffer at the hands of Orlando much on the night, though the Lions' goal came on a counterattack that started when Haak couldn't find a teammate with a redirection, springing a successful counter for Orlando. Birk Risa couldn't go in this game, nor could Tayvon Gray, but their fill-ins Haak and Ilenič did their jobs. It's tempting to wonder if Jansen will stick with this group as his regular backline, especially since Shore looked so comfortable in the midfield.
4. Entering The Nostalgia Zone.
The game ultimately went NYCFC's way, but so much of the lead-up to this year's home opener revolved around commemorating the 10th anniversary of NYCFC's on-field debut. Today was that anniversary for both teams and, a little closer to home, today is also the anniversary of the first NYCFC game Hudson River Blue ever covered.
HRB's founder and first Executive Editor, Raf Noboa y Rivera, wrote poetically of the significance of NYCFC's on-field debut in a post from March 8, 2015, aptly titled "This is it. Let us begin."
It's a fun read to revisit here (courtesy of the Internet Archive), with Raf writing of the team's inaugural competitive match, "There will be other seasons; there will be other kickoffs. This one, though; this one will never happen again. When that ball starts rolling shortly after five o'clock today, it rolls from a mountain downward."
"We know not where that ball will go from there: the ball is round, so that the game can change direction. Whether it rolls towards victory or defeat today matters less than it is rolling at all. There are newer summits waiting to be climbed by this team; they will be, whether now, or in seasons to come. But this one: enjoy this one, because you can't ever climb it again."
The memories of that first game at the Citrus Bowl were revisited often this week leading up to the latest NYCFC-Orlando City clash. This 10th anniversary is also a moment for us to stop and appreciate that we've made it this far. This website has been around for as long as the team has existed, and it has persisted through ups and downs, humming along under the leadership of multiple different editors while managing to pull ourselves through some tough times, like the severing of our connection to SBNation and our move to become independent and reader-supported.
We're still here 10 years later and we're collectively ready for another great 10 years, which will now include the momentous occasion of a new stadium opening in Queens, along with hundreds more New York City FC matches for us to cover. This particular win on a cold night in the Bronx might not be remembered as reverently as the first home game in team history, but it was a symbolic, important, memorable night all the same.
