BRONX, NY– The Colorado Rapids have a new sense of life after back-to-back wins against Western Conference foes. The woes of that Seattle performance seem so far away for the Rapids. It will be a different challenge for the Rapids in matchweek 4, as Colorado travels to New York to face Eastern Conference opponent NYCFC. It’s still a baseball stadium for NYCFC, since their brand-new stadium won’t be ready until 2027. It will be a whole new challenge for Rapids head coach Matt Wells on the different field dimensions of Yankee Stadium. How will the Englishman adapt his team for this game? Let’s take a look at the matchup.
When: Saturday, March 14th @ 5:30 p.m. MST
Where: Yankee Stadium
TV/Streaming: Apple TV
Rapids Run Riot After Red Card
It may have taken a red card for the Rapids to take over the game in the second half, but it was another good performance and another step in the right direction for this Rapids side. Colorado was the better team in the first half and for the 30 minutes after Gabriel Pec was sent off. Darren Yapi got his first goal of the season in the first half. Alexis Manyoma scored the winner with his first goal in MLS, and Rafa Navarro opened his account in 2026 with a brace. It is good to see the attackers getting going for the Rapids.
What wasn’t good to see was the 15-minute spell between the start of the second half and the red card. LA got into a groove during this stretch, having nine shots in 15 minutes, including the equalizer from Joao Klauss. The game had slipped away from the Rapids, and a go-ahead goal looked inevitable for the visitors. That was until Gabriel Pec inexplicably chopped down a streaking Rafa Navarro to earn his second yellow and marching orders. The tides of the games turned after the dismissal, and Colorado took care of business with the three unanswered goals.
It felt like the game was leaning towards the Galaxy’s favor before the red card, and it very well could have been a Galaxy win if Pec hadn’t gotten sent off. That’s the worrying bit. Colorado has also only won when their opponent gets a red card. It’s more of a formality for the Portland game, as the Rapids had that game under control even before Jimer Fory saw red. However, it is not a bad thing for a team to be good once they have a man advantage. Past Rapids sides would struggle and sometimes look like they were a man down in moments, playing against ten men. Colorado are good when they have a man advantage under Matt Wells, and that is a good thing.
Lineup Prediction:
Hansen / Rosenberry (c), Holding, Herrington, Travis / Ojediran, Atencio, Aaronson / Sealy, Navarro, Yapi
Zack Steffen remains out with the shoulder injury. Connor Ronan and Reggie Cannon join the shotstopper on the injury report list after their injuries in the second half against the LA Galaxy. Cannon would realistically be the only player who would switch up the starting eleven. Keegan Rosenberry filled in for him in the Galaxy game, and I see the same happening against NYCFC.
It seems like Matt Wells has figured out a go-to starting eleven in just three games. That’s impressive. Barring injuries, Wells has a bunch of guys he can rely on in all three positional groups. The backline of Cannon, Holding, Herrington, and Travis has been phenomenal, only conceding once in the last two. Ojediran and Atencio have done well in the middle, with Wayne Frederick being a surprise great option off the bench. It seems like only a matter of time before Frederick gets a chance to start. Darren Yapi played very well against the Galaxy and seems to have made the spot beside Rafa and Dante Sealy his own, for the time being.
This type of lineup consistency can be very good for a team. Especially good for a team that is trying to learn a new system under a new coach. The Rapids are also much better depth-wise than in previous seasons. Wells is creating a winning formula in Colorado, and if the good times continue into New York, the Rapids could be a scary team.
Red Cards Galore (But Not for Colorado or NYCFC)
An interesting stat going into this game is that in both teams’ first three matches, there has been a red card in five of them. It would be all six if you count Noah Cobb’s red card that was rescinded by VAR. All five have been given to the opponents of either the Rapids or NYCFC. NYCFC has especially benefited from red cards. They have scored seven goals after the sending-offs and gained five points from those goals. Colorado took two more points away from LA after scoring three times, but has gained fewer from the red cards in their game.
Smart money will be on a red card in this match (not for you, Derrick Jones and Yaw Yeboah). These two teams have combined for one loss in the one game that had no red card. It would be interesting to see who would come out on top without any players getting sent off.
NYCFC (Almost) Perfect Start to 2026
NYCFC has won twice and drawn once in their first three matches of the season. Their one draw was against the LA Galaxy, and the New York side needed a red card and a penalty to get the point in a 1-1 draw in LA. NYCFC also took care of Philadelphia after a strange red card put the Union down a man in second-half stoppage time, with the score locked at 1-1. They found the winner late. It was much easier for NYCFC against Orlando, as Orlando keeper Maxime Crépeau saw red just 16 minutes into the match, and NYCFC took advantage in a 5-0 win.Â
NYCFC are doing all of this without an out-and-out number nine. It has been a makeshift false nine, Nicolás Fernández, through the first three games. It has been a mixed bag for the attackers in New York, as they exploded for five against Orlando, but have struggled at times without an actual striker up top. Despite this, NYCFC are unbeaten in their first three, and will look to make it four at home against the Colorado Rapids.
Since it is a home game for NYCFC, the field will be a huge factor. Yankee Stadium is an impressive stadium, but ultimately it is a baseball stadium. This forces the field to be much smaller than usual MLS fields. It is much narrower and a tad shorter. This puts Colorado at a disadvantage in many ways. One, NYCFC are used to this field size. This gives them an advantage in knowing how the field affects the game. Colorado hasn’t been to Yankee Stadium since 2022, but played at Citi Field in 2024. The Pids have never won at Yankees Stadium but won 2-0 in 2024, with former Red Bulls Chris Armas and Omir Fernandez.
Another disadvantage for the Rapids comes from how Matt Wells wants his team to play. There is going to be even less space in the Rapids third to play out from. It will be very difficult for Colorado to play the game they want to in New York. It will be interesting to see if Wells adjusts and adapts to the field.
Prediction: Colorado finds the change in field too difficult and has a few bad moments in possession throughout the game. NYCFC wins it 2-1.
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Matt Pollard 
Eamon Shaw 