Overview:
New York City FC can clinch an MLS Cup Playoff berth if two results go its way on Saturday.
Pascal Jansen: “Mentality wise, I think we’re in a good place at the moment.” (Photo courtesy of MLS)
New York City FC can clinch an MLS Cup Playoff berth if two results go its way on Saturday.
The Pigeons (15-9-6, 50 points), who sit in fifth place in the MLS Eastern Conference, need to defeat third-place Charlotte FC (17-11-2, 53) at Yankee Stadium in their noon match.
Then they need some help from the 10th-place New York Red Bulls (11-12-7, 40), who would need to lose or draw at woeful and 15th-place CF Montreal (5-16-9, 24) on Saturday night.
“Mentality wise, I think we’re in a good place at the moment,” NYCFC head coach Pascal Jansen said during a Friday press conference. “We had a minor bump in the road against D.C. [United] at home, but we’re playing at a pretty decent level at the moment.”
City is coming off a 3-2 road win at the Columbus Crew.
“You could see the mental state that the team is in at the moment,” Jansen said. “Never giving up—we went down twice, came back, and obviously scored the winner in the dying seconds.
“I think overall, we’re in a good place at the moment, and the stretch is tough, but we’re looking forward to it. Obviously, coming back from a win against Columbus, and especially the way we did it is quite impressive.”
