Bradley sees ‘signs of a real team’ in Red Bulls side

Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.

Michael Bradley believes he saw “the sign of a real team” in his New York Red Bulls side ahead of their MLS clash with St. Louis City SC this weekend.

The Red Bulls are aiming to secure a third consecutive win in the league after 1-0 wins over the Columbus Crew and rivals New York City FC.

Julian Hall scored the lone goal in their win over NYCFC, the 18-year-old’s 10th goal of the season and fourth match-winner.

The only player to score more match-winning goals in a season at 18 years old or younger is Diego Fagundez (five) for the New England Revolution in 2013.

Red Bulls goalkeeper Ethan Horvath also made four saves against NYCFC, but Bradley acknowledged the defensive contributions from his whole team.

“Ethan has been ready to make some big plays,” Bradley said.

“He’s been there for us and the guys in the back, but in reality it’s the guys in the back and the midfielders and the attackers coming back.

“There’s a lot of guys who make some big plays, some big blocks, some really hard reactions.

— Red Bull New York (@NewYorkRedBulls) September 24, 2026

The Red Bulls face a difficult test against St. Louis, who have not lost in any competition since May 3.

St. Louis’ recent form has seen them move up to third in the Western Conference, now just five points behind leader Vancouver Whitecaps, and reach the finals of the US Open Cup.

Their most recent outing was a 3-1 win over Toronto FC at home, while their last away match in MLS was a 2-2 draw with the Portland Timbers.

With top scorer Hall unavailable after being called up to the United States squad, Cade Cowell will look to step up for NYRB.

The 22-year-old, who has scored twice in 2026, has six assists this term, with only Emil Forsberg registering more (seven).

Seven different St. Louis players have at least five goal contributions during the team’s current 16-game unbeaten run, led by Simon Becher’s nine (seven goals, two assists).

Nine different St. Louis players have scored a match-winner in that time, with Tomas Totland (two) the only one with multiple (one own goal winner).

MATCH PREDICTION – ST. LOUIS CITY WIN

This will be St. Louis City’s 148th match in all competitions and 130th in the regular season, but their first-ever match against the New York Red Bulls.

St. Louis extended their regular-season unbeaten run to 16 games (W11 D5) with a win over Toronto, equalling NYRB’s 2016 run for the third-longest in a single regular season in MLS history.

The only longer single-season unbeaten runs in regular-season play in MLS history are 19 straight by FC Dallas in 2010 and 18 straight by Columbus in 2004.

NYRB have posted back-to-back wins for the third time this season with victories over Columbus and NYCFC. The Red Bulls have won three straight regular-season matches only once over the last three seasons, doing so in May 2025.

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