Among the things preventing the New York Red Bulls from holding a loftier place in the Eastern Conference standings is their tendency to settle for draws. The Red Bulls hope to stop a streak of three straight draws with a victory on Wednesday night when they host CF Montreal. New York (9-4-10, 37 points) is fourth in the East, trails the third-place Columbus Crew by five points and faces an 11-point gap behind conference leader FC Cincinnati. The Red Bulls are 1-0-5 over their past six games and have been blanked twice in that span. New York, which leads all teams in playoff position with 10 draws, settled for a 1-1 final at the Colorado Rapids on Saturday. Lewis Morgan scored late in the first half for the Red Bulls, but Sean Nealis conceded an own goal in the 64th minute. "You wanted to come here and get three points, especially after we go ahead and I think we did have opportunities, enough opportunities, anyway, before we tied or even scored before we did," Morgan said. "I think what will determine how good this result is, is how good the rest of our week goes. So, we move onto Wednesday against Montreal, and we know that it is going to be a big one and let's follow this up with a couple of positive results at home." Montreal (6-9-8, 26 points) is 10th place in the East but shares the same point total as ninth-place Nashville SC. Since dropping four straight from May 4-18, Montreal is 3-2-5 in its past 10 contests. Montreal posted its fifth shutout of the season with a 1-0 home win over Atlanta United on Saturday. Ruan scored on a header in the 51st minute, and Montreal did not concede a shot on goal. "I think we did the job," Montreal goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois said. "We came out with three points at a point in the season when each point is vital. So I'm a little more satisfied -- especially from a defensive point of view -- than disappointed right now." --Field Level Media
Jul 13, 2024; Commerce City, Colorado, USA; New York Red Bulls midfielder Lewis Morgan (9) signals to fans after the match against the Colorado Rapids at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports