News

Game Guide: Cosmos vs. New York City FC

Here's what you should know about the inaugural East River Derby.
Published Jun 16, 2015

By Wilson Sy

Who

New York Cosmos (NASL) vs. New York City FC (MLS) 

2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, Fourth Round 

When & Where

Wednesday, June 17 at 7:30 p.m. ET

James M. Shuart Stadium at Hofstra University

The Stakes

New York Cosmos: The Cosmos clinched the NASL Spring Season title this past Saturday after a 3-3 tie with Jacksonville Armada FC at Shuart Stadium. The Cosmos scored the first goal when Raúl caught Jacksonville goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo out of position with a 40-yard lob. Midfielder Hagop Chirishian netted his first goal of the NASL season off an assist from Danny Szetela. Moments after Jacksonville tied the game at 2-2, Lucky Mkosana scored his third goal of the season to give the Cosmos a late lead before Jacksonville tied the action-packed match in the 90th minute. With the draw, New York also became the first team to post an undefeated league record during the 10-game Spring sprint. 

To get to this stage of the U.S. Open Cup the Cosmos defeated Jersey Express 3-0 on May 27 at St. John’s in the third round. Leo Fernandes gave the Cosmos the first lead in the 14th minute off a free kick. Sebastián Guenzatti made it 2-0 in the 40th minute before Mads Stokkelien converted a penalty kick in the 81st minute for the Cosmos final goal. 

A win against NYCFC would send the Cosmos to the fifth round of the tournament, where’d they’d face the winner of a Rochester Rhinos-Philadelphia Union matchup on June 16. It would also mark the second time the Cosmos defeated an MLS team in the U.S. Open Cup. The Cosmos beat the New York Red Bulls 3-0 in the fourth round of last year’s Open Cup.

New York City FC: New York City FC defeated Montreal Impact 3-1 on Saturday night to improve to 3-7-5 (14 points) on the year. With the win, the expansion side prevailed in consecutive games for the first time in club history.

Captain David Villa scored the first goal in the 31st minute of the match, making him the leading goal-scorer for NYCFC with four goals on the season. Midfielder Mix Diskerud scored in the 76th minute, marking his second goal this week; the other was for the U.S. Men's National Team in an impressive win over Germany. Ghanaian midfielder Kwadwo Poku, who played against the Cosmos as a member of the Atlanta Silverbacks in 2014, clinched the win by scoring his first goal of the season in the final minute. 

Matchup History

This is the first matchup between the two sides. The winner of this contest will advance to the fifth round of the U.S. Open Cup, which will take place on June 30 and July 1.

Notes

Undefeated Spring

Since the start of the 2015 NASL Spring Season, the Cosmos have yet to lose a game. In 10 NASL games, a friendly in Havana against the Cuban National Team and a U.S. Open Cup game, the Cosmos have earned seven wins and five draws. At home the Cosmos are 4-1-0 (WDL) this season, having conceded only five goals.

Battle for New York

Last season the Cosmos defeated the New York Red Bulls 3-0 in the first fully professional New York derby in decades. That game took place in the fourth round of the 2014 U.S. Open Cup. Now NYCFC comes to the Cosmos’ home field for an East River Derby. This will be the first meeting between the two clubs and it will be the first U.S. Open Cup game in NYCFC history.

Famed Spanish No. 7s Square Off

For the first time since coming to North America, star Spanish strikers Raúl (Cosmos) and David Villa (NYCFC) will play against each other. They were briefly teammates on the Spanish national team, are the top two scorers all-time for their country on the international stage and played for opposing clubs in Spain’s top division, La Liga. Now they’re in their first seasons with their respective New York clubs and have each scored four goals so far. 

Quotes

“It’s going to be a derby. These sorts of matches are huge for U.S. Soccer and New York. We’ll be matching up against a very good team. It’s going to be a great challenge for us.”

-Giovanni Savarese