The Major League Soccer season got under way in February, but so far it hasn’t gone so brilliantly for either of New York’s two teams in the league. New York City are sitting in 10^th position, having won only 4 games out of 13. The team seems as likely to draw games as to win them. One thing they do have going for them is their capacity to win a title. They won the Major League Cup in 2021.

The New York Red Bulls are also struggling. They sit just below their fellow New Yorkers in 11th place in the standings. Although online betting operators struggle to keep MLS odds markets alive, you’d feel quite comfortable betting on a Red Bulls match. The team have more draws to their name than anything else in the league just now, and they’ve never won the championship. Below is a look at both sides might fare this season.

Can New York City lift the Major League Cup this season?

It’s definitely been within their capabilities in the past, and they were the first team to bring  home a major league sports championship to the city in a decade. There’s a lot of the season still to go, and that’s plenty of time to place itself in suitable contention for the cup.

However, that being said… the New Yorkers are going to have to do some serious work if they’re to make good on that potential because, right now, a cup win isn’t looking likely. Going into their recent match against Orlando City, which ended 1-1, they’d only pulled two draws from their last seven matches, and the other results were defeats. Within seven minutes of the first half, the Lions had gone a goal up, and it took the Pigeons until the 89^th minute to pull a goal back, with rookie forward Gabriel Segal putting the ball in the back of the net to force the draw.

One of the issues the Pigeons have is that of struggling to retain key players. Midfielder Maxi Moralez played a major part in the team’s championship victory but later moved back to Argentina to play for his boyhood side Racing Club. The club will also miss Valentin Castellanos, who is on loan to Girona and is playing in the Spanish La Liga but who will be on transfer in summer. Attacking midfielder and right winger Gabriel Pereira will play an important part in the team’s title hopes. New York City will also be hoping that now Gabriel Segal has finally put the ball in the net for the club he develops a taste for scoring.

Can New York City Red Bulls lift the Major League Cup this season?

The Bulls are down at the bottom of the Eastern Conference table, a fact which is confounding some analysts because defensively the team have performed well. Opponents have had a real job on their hands trying to create quality chances against them. Since a playoffs appearance by the Bulls is also a regular occurrence, experts are predicting they’ll secure a place in the playoffs for the team. However, the team struggles to create quality chances itself consistently enough, so despite expectations that the Bulls will move up the standings, whether they do so is another matter.

That doesn’t’ mean anyone should rule out the squad for championship contention. Coach Gerhard Struber has no fear when it comes to carrying out dramatic overhauls, and in his first season he improved the results of the team, so another overhaul could be on the cards. The loss of one of their key men, Lewis Morgan, to a hip injury could inflict major damage on the team’s hopes and any possible journey towards the title and could also lead to some big changes from Struber. Morgan is a perfect example of the high energy style of play that has become characteristic of the Bulls under Struber.

The Red Bulls will be hoping that Belgian striker Dante Vanzeir, who made sports headlines for all the wrong reasons and has had to serve a six match suspension, can come up with the goods for the side. Vanzeir will especially have to step up as his addition to the team balances out the loss of Aaron Long, who moved to Los Angeles FC, a move which has left the Bulls weaker at the back. Vanzeir’s movement is intelligent, his shooting is accurate and effective, and he’s alert and shows quick reactions, and hopefully the Bulls will be able to capitalize on this.

There’s still a lot of the season to go, but neither New York team is looking like they might lift the cup this season. New York City definitely have potential, but are having a bad run this season, and the Red Bulls may make it to the playoffs, but the cup is still likely to evade them.

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