They aren't walking out of Toyota Stadium with three points, but the New York Red Bulls have reason to be pleased after keeping FC Dallas off the board on Friday following a 0-0 draw.
It was the first game in which Dallas were held scoreless since a loss to Colorado on April 10, and New York entered the match knowing they would have their hands full against the highest-scoring team in the league, playing at their home stadium, no less.
But despite failing to put any shots in the back of the net themselves, the mood after the game was largely positive for the visitors.
"I think, for us, it was a good point on the road," Red Bulls head coach Jesse Marsch said after the game. "To come against a dangerous, attacking team, one of the most dangerous teams in the league, and to come in here and get a point, and get a shutout, showed that we were ready for the game and that we game planned and executed the right way."
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the result, Marsch singled out praise for his defense on the night, which held FCD to just three shots on goal.
"The backline, overall, did really well," he said. "[Fabian] Castillo is one of the most dangerous players in the league, if not the most dangerous and we didn't give much away. He had one chance at the end that resulted in almost a broken play, but Chris Duvall was up for the task. I think Karl Ouimette did a very good job filling in, and the pairing of him and Damien [Perrinelle] was quite good, and Kemar Lawrence played well.
"We've used a lot of combinations on the back line, but they've all stepped up and performed admirably, so that's a good sign," he added.
But it wasn't just the defense that stepped up to preserve the clean sheet. A midfielder, Felipe, came up with the play of the game as he made a goal line clearance on Michael Barrios' shot in the 73rd minute to keep the game scoreless.
Fellow midfielder Dax McCarty was also pleased with the defensive performance, but noted there's still room for improvement.
"We got a shutout, that's a positive...We could tighten it up and be a little sharper back there, but overall anytime you get a shutout it's a positive. We can do a better job of being able to play a little bit cleaner out of the back with the ball at our feet," he said.
For his part, Duvall also wanted more overall from the Red Bulls' effort on the night.
"Both teams came to fight, but we would have liked to get more out of the game," he explained. "They had a few chances. We had a few good chances, and I think it was a good result for us against a good team, getting a point, but we were looking for more."
