New York City FC Goals: Parks 37'
Club Necaxa Goals: Valencia 58', Torres 79'
Quick Read
New York City FC suffered a 2-1 defeat to Club Necaxa in their final Leagues Cup group game. Keaton Parks headed New York City ahead before halftime, but second-half goals from Juan Valencia and Juan Torres turned the contest around. Despite pushing for an equalizer late on, the hosts suffered a narrow defeat.
Match Recap
New York City FC hosted Club Necaxa in their final Leagues Cup group game on Thursday night.
Pascal Jansen’s side were keen to bounce back from defeat to Cruz Azul in their previous outing. Jansen made six changes to the team that faced Cruz Azul, including handing Luighi his first start since joining the Club.
The first opportunity of the night fell to Necaxa in the third minute. Owen González tried his luck from outside the box, but Tomás Romero was equal to the effort and made the save.
A dangerous free kick from Necaxa then forced some last-ditch defending from Keaton Parks and James Sands.
New York City gradually began to engineer openings at the other end, with Luighi registering his first attempt in the 11th minute. The Brazilian found space just outside the box before sending his right-footed effort over the crossbar.
Luighi continued to pose problems for the Necaxa defense, drawing several fouls in quick succession. In the 22nd minute, he turned into space and got a shot away, but his effort flew over the bar.
Next, it was Mitja Ilenič’s turn to test goalkeeper Luis Jiménez. The fullback drove inside from the right and, after a mazy run, fired a shot with his weaker left foot that Jiménez was able to gather.
New York City continued to ramp up the pressure on Necaxa’s goal, with Luighi presented with a great chance to break the deadlock shortly after the half-hour mark.
A delightful cross from Nico Fernández Mercau found the Brazilian forward in space, but he could not direct his header on target.
The breakthrough appeared to be getting closer, and it arrived from a set piece in the 37th minute. Fernández Mercau once again produced a brilliant delivery, with Parks on hand to stoop and head the ball into the net.
Necaxa had been limited to few opportunities in the first half but threatened just before halftime following a quick counterattack. Lorenzo Faravelli found himself on the ball just outside the box, but Sands did brilliantly to block the shot and force it behind for a corner.
Romero was then called into action after a long ball over the top required his intervention. The goalkeeper showed great composure to take control of the loose ball and play out from the back.
The start of the second half saw New York City establish control of possession as they went in pursuit of a second goal.
In the 51st minute, a defense-splitting pass from Fernández Mercau almost found the run of Perea, but the ball skipped off the grass and into the hands of Jiménez.
Necaxa found an equalizer just before the hour mark when Juan Valencia finished into the bottom corner. The goal was awarded following a lengthy VAR check.
Jansen opted to make his first changes in the 70th minute, introducing Kevin O’Toole and Jonny Shore in place of Parks and Perea.
He made further changes soon after, introducing Talles Magno, Tayvon Gray and Elhadji Samb, the latter making his New York City FC debut. The trio replaced Sands, Benié Traoré and Malachi Jones.
The visitors then took the lead in the 79th minute after a deflected cross into the box created a pinball situation. When the ball eventually fell to Juan Torres, he volleyed past Romero from close range.
As the clock ticked toward full time, Shore tried his best to restore parity. Unfortunately, he was unable to hit the target.
New York City battled valiantly until the final whistle but were unable to find the much-coveted equalizer, ultimately falling to a 2-1 defeat.
How We Lined Up
What's Next
This concludes NEw York City FC's participation in Leagues Cup. Next up is a game against the Philadelphia Union on Sunday, August 16. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00PM ET.
