So many chances but no goals: NYCFC draws with D.C. United | OneFootball

On Wednesday, New York City FC traveled down to Washington, D.C. to take on D.C. United. Entering the midweek game, the teams had five points between them. However, the recent scoring struggles and the hardships on the road made this match a concerning one. Sadly, the Pigeons could not score, drawing 0-0 after 90 minutes of play.

Before the game, it appeared Pascal Jansen wanted to try and boost the attack by signing NYCFC II’s Seymour Reid. The young forward was called up for his fourth and final short-term contract of the season. Despite the MLS Next Pro team’s recent struggles, Reid has been scoring. He recently scored a hat trick against the New York Red Bulls II. Yet, he did not make an appearance, making this move questionable.

The head coach put out one of his stronger Starting XIs with his roster. Maxi Moralez surprisingly started the game despite the Hudson River Derby being this weekend. Justin Haak also played in the midfield, with Birk Risa stepping into the backline to partner with Thiago Martins. This made sense, especially with Keaton Parks’ injury.

NYCFC did face an old friend during the match. Luis Barraza was in goal for D.C., making the fixture the battle of the former keeper and the one who knocked him out of goal, Matt Freese. Of course, Barraza came out on top after the Pigeons could not get the ball past him. He was also busier than Freese and had five saves compared to the NYCFC keeper’s two.

NYCFC plays to a scoreless draw

The game can be summarized as this: the Boys in Blue had numerous chances, outplayed D.C., and dominated in multiple statistics. Yet, the scoring ability was MIA. As such, NYCFC’s draw was another failure. What hurts is that the team was relentless in the attack.

Alonso Martínez had a brilliant chance in the 11th minute after the team moved the ball well into the final third. However, he hit the top right corner of the goal, and Julián Fernández could not put the rebound ball on target.

There was also a fantastic chance for Perea in the 28th minute. The midfielder tried to sneak in the ball after a free kick, but Barraza made the save.

Another solid opportunity came in the 34th. D.C. gave the ball away in their attacking third, and it eventually fell to Martínez. He struck his shot from a little to the right of goal, but Barraza came out, made himself big, and got the stop.

NYCFC would not stop their relentless pursuit of a goal, and the D.C. keeper would not stop making save after save. The Bronx side had another great chance in the 47th minute, ultimately having multiple players in front of the goal who could have capitalized. Yet, Jonathan Shore’s shot was pushed out for a corner kick instead.

Meanwhile, Martínez continued his chase for a goal. In the 63rd minute, Fernández made a great run towards the box and found the Costa Rican. He moved slightly to the right, and Martinez shot the ball at a little bit of an angle. Once again, the ball failed to end in the back of the net.

The last solid chance came around the 86th minute. Perea had some room in front of him and should have put the ball on target. Instead, he sent the ball wide, illuminating what life has been like for NYCFC.

This was a superb offensive effort by the Pigeons. They outplayed D.C. without any question. It is extremely frustrating that they cannot find the clinical finish to score multiple goals and win more matches than they have.

Barraza did do a great job against his former team, but NYCFC is on a path they do not want to be on. At the very least, there were better chances compared to their last couple of games, where many shots were lackluster at best.