The New York Red Bulls were defeated at home Wednesday night after an 81st minute Gonzalo Higuain free kick. The Argentinian announced his arrival in Major League Soccer by scoring his first goal with a stunning set piece, putting Inter Miami up 2-1 in Harrison, New Jersey. The result gives Miami 14 points this season, seeing them in 12th place in the conference. New York, on the other hand, currently sit in 7th place at 20 points. This is their second consecutive defeat.
The Red Bulls were first on the scoresheet, with Omir Fernandez finding the back of the net after a series of blunders put Miami in a tough spot. A poor clearance by Inter’s Ben Sweat in the 53rd minute, Jared Stroud found Fernandez at the back post with a low cross to give New York the 1-0 advantage.
Miami did not take long to respond, leveling the score less than three minutes later. Matias Pellegrini also scored his first MLS goal, after a cross, which was slightly behind the double covered Higuain, found an unmarked Pellegrini and smashed in the back of the net.
Higuain sealed the victory after a Jason Pendant foul just outside the penalty box. The ex-Chelsea/Juventus star drove his right foot through it and found the top right corner of the net, opening his account in the league and giving his team the 2-1 advantage.
This was the first match for the Red Bulls since it named Gerhard Struber its newest head coach on Tuesday. Struber was head coach at FC Liefering, Barnsley FC and Wolfsberger FC prior to coming to New York.
Next on the schedule is a clash Saturday night with Atlanta United, who are coming off a 0-0 draw with Orlando City.
Edited by Nick Sbordone