The morale in New York City FC’s squad is good, so says coach Nick Cushing, as his team aim to extend their winning streak when they take on the Colorado Rapids.
NYCFC have won their last three MLS games, and are unbeaten in five, heading into Saturday’s fixture.
It is their final game of a five-match home run, with Cushing’s team up to sixth in the Eastern Conference.
"The morale is really good," Cushing said. "As a coach, you like it when the mood is happy and vibrant and everybody is flying but you also want to make sure the feet are on the floor and the eyes are facing forward.
"We looked at the performance [against Charlotte FC], and I agree we have to score more goals. The process of scoring more goals was about how do we create more chances. I think now we're in a place where it is about how do we score more of the chances we create.
"The aim is to make sure that we prepare ourselves well so that we get ourselves mentally to a place where we can perform well and control the game against a really difficult Colorado team.
"We know they’re going to press and be aggressive. The area of development for the team is to take the chances we create and score goals and continue to be an attacking team.
"Every time we’re hard to play against we give ourselves a chance of winning. When I look out at the guys on the training field I see hungry guys."
The Rapids, meanwhile, are sixth in the Western Conference.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
NYCFC – Santiago Rodriguez
Rodriguez assisted on New York City FC’s stoppage-time winning goal on Saturday, his sixth goal contribution of the season (four goals, two assists), all at home. Since the start of last season, Rodriguez has recorded 15 goal contributions in 22 home matches compared to four in 19 away matches.
Colorado Rapids – Rafael Navarro
Navarro is the Rapids’ leading scorer this season, with four goals in MLS. All of those have come from his right foot, with Navarro averaging a goal every 201 minutes.
MATCH PREDICTION: NYCFC WIN
Colorado’s four-match unbeaten run ended last week with a 2-1 loss at FC Cincinnati. The Rapids are winless in their last nine away matches against Eastern Conference opposition in all competitions (D3 L6).
NYCFC have won three straight regular-season matches for the first time since the last three matches of the 2022 season. NYCFC had managed only two wins in their previous 10 matches dating back to the end of last season.
NYCFC are unbeaten in six all-time meetings with the Rapids (W3 D3). The Rapids are one of two teams (San Jose Earthquakes) NYCFC have played more than three times and never lost against.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
NYCFC – 52%
Colorado Rapids – 21.1%
Draw – 26.9%
Nick Cushing is pushing for more as New York City bid for a third successive victory against Charlotte FC at Yankee Stadium on Saturday.
NYCFC are eighth in the Eastern Conference standings after back-to-back 2-0 home wins over the New England Revolution and D.C. United, having gone four unbeaten (two wins, two draws).
Their consecutive wins have come after a run of just two victories in their previous 10 (three draws, five losses), but Cushing does not want his team to stop there.
"I think the three-game run is something that we have a huge desire to achieve," Cushing said.
"I said after the game in the locker room, it has been a long time since we've gone back-to-back. It's been too long, really, since we went back-to-back, so it's good to enjoy that after the game.
"Now we have the opportunity to do a three-game run. We have to make sure we do that before we think about anything else."
Charlotte have gone the opposite way in recent weeks, losing two of their last three games to leave them behind New York on goal difference.
Former Aston Villa boss Dean Smith acknowledges they need to show more in the forward areas after averaging just one goal per game in 2024.
"That's certainly an area where we need to be better, I think we all know that. We've been working on it for the last three or four weeks," Smith said.
"I think defensively we've been really solid. In terms of our creativity, we've had some big chances that we haven't taken.
"Last week [in a 3-0 loss to Minnesota United] there were some moments we didn't take as well, technically we just failed on that."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
New York City – Santiago Rodriguez
Rodriguez recorded a goal and an assist in NYCFC's win over D.C. last week and now has four goals and one assist this season, with all of those involvements coming at home.
Since the start of last season, 14 (seven goals, seven assists) of Rodriguez's 16 goal contributions in regular-season matches have come at home.
Charlotte FC – Ashley Westwood
Charlotte have failed to score in two of their last three games, and a lack of creativity has been a theme of their campaign to date.
Captain Westwood leads all Charlotte players for chances created this season, with 13, and he could be key if they are to hit the goal trail.
MATCH PREDICTION – NEW YORK CITY WIN
Charlotte are unbeaten in five all-time meetings with New York (four wins, one draw), including a 1-0 win over them in the teams' season opener on February 24.
The Crown are the only team NYCFC have faced more than once in MLS play and never defeated, but that may just change this week.
New York have won back-to-back matches to nil, a major defensive upturn after they managed just one clean sheet in their previous 10. Charlotte, meanwhile, have only earned one point from four road games in MLS this year, losing their last three in a row.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
New York City – 51.8%
Charlotte FC – 21.1%
Draw – 27.1%
Emma Hayes has been backed to do an “incredible” job as United States women’s team boss by old rival Nick Cushing, who is making his own mark across the pond with New York City FC.
It is four months since it was announced that the 47-year-old would be calling time on her medal-laden time as Chelsea at the end of the season to become a national team manager.
Hayes will be returning to the country where she began her coaching career at the start of the millennium and will likely bump into one of the few managers to have dented her domestic dominance.
Cushing currently coaches Major League Soccer side NYCFC having previous led Manchester City for six years, including beating Chelsea to the 2016 Women’s Super League crown.
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“She’s incredible about what she does,” he said. “I loved fighting with her – we fought every weekend and every season for those trophies.
“I think she’ll do an incredible job. I think if I was going to hire, I would’ve hired her because she’s the best in the women’s game by far.
“Her record speaks for itself but also her ability to manage, her knowledge of the game.
“I do believe you’ll see her in the men’s game at some point. That’s my opinion. I think she’s capable and I think in time people will see her capability.
“I think she’ll be successful in the US women’s national team and then she will have almost conquered the women’s game.”
Cushing is full of admiration and praise for Hayes, whose outstanding work at Chelsea restricted him to a still impressive haul of six trophies in as many years with City.
They were tussling for the WSL title again before the 39-year-old left during the 2019-20 season to become assistant manager of fellow City Football Group side NYCFC.
They won the MLS Cup the following year and Cushing was promoted to head coach in 2022 following an initial spell as Ronny Deila’s interim replacement.
“If you give me my time again and give me a crystal ball, I would be a football player every time,” the NYCFC boss said. “10 times out of 10.
“But when you don’t get the ability to be a football player and then you invest your time at 19 to becoming a coach, you get to the point where you’re at 39 where you probably should be in the first two years of your coaching.
“But you’ve got nearly 20 years of working at academy level through all ages, then the women’s game.
“I didn’t pick my journey but if I could change anything I probably wouldn’t change much of what I’ve done.”
Cushing wants to kick on in his second full season in charge at NYCFC, who continue the new MLS season at St Louis City having narrowly lost their opener at Charlotte FC.
The 39-year-old says he is driven by a desire to keep up with successful CFG stablemates and clearly wants to take his career as far as he can, having risen through the ranks since joining City as a schools coach in 2007.
“My ambition is to work at the highest level of the game,” Cushing said when asked about the potential of one day managing boyhood club Everton.
“Every time I have gone up, I’ve never felt out of my depth and felt like it was a challenge greater than what I have capable in my character.”
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