In this weekend's soccer action, the Red Bulls overcame a thorn in their side, the Cosmos kept rolling, and NYCFC fans weren't allowed the privilege of watching their team suffer another loss.

KLJESTAN MAKES HIS MARK: RED BULLS 3, CHICAGO 2



Sacha Kljestan put home a game-winning penalty against Chicago. (New York Red Bulls Facebook)

At the end of August, question marks had popped up around the Red Bulls when last place Chicago handed them a 3-2 loss on the road. Was this a bad night, or the start of a serious dip in form?

After beating down their longstanding rivals DC 3-0 the same week, the Red Bulls were set to host Chicago for a chance at revenge. But again the team seemed snakebitten, with Jeff Larentowicz converting an early penalty kick and David Accam breaking ankles to put the Fire up 2-0 in Harrison inside the first half an hour:

The Red Bulls had only once come back from a two goal deficit this season (in a 2-2 draw at DC in March), so a challenging game state was on the table. To their credit, the Red Bulls responded immediately. Sacha Kljestan would feed Bradley Wright-Phillips for his 14th of the season just two minutes after Accam's goal. Mike Grella would once again create magic in tight spaces ten minutes later to level the match 2-2:

A penalty kick put away by Kljestan would provide the game winner in the 71st minute. Kljestan has been lights out for RBNY since his ridiculous red card incident in June, scoring four goals and providing nine assists in eleven games. (He had just two goals and one assist in the fourteen games prior.)

Kljestan touched on what's helped change his game - comfort with his teammates. "The relationships with the guys around me have grown so much and I feel so much more comfortable. I think the goal that Bradley scored is an awesome goal because I take one touch and then I play it to him on the ground, and he already knows where the ball's going to be and I already know where he's going to be. At the beginning of the season you don't really have that because I'm the new guy and I haven't played with these guys...I've got a ton of confidence right now and I think that's bleeding out to the rest of my teammates."

That confidence has helped the Red Bulls climb to the top of the MLS Eastern Conference for the first time since April. Tied on points with DC but with three games in hand, they are rapidly becoming a lock to win the East and a viable contender for the Supporters' Shield.

If they want to put the Shield in their trophy case for the second time in three years, they'll need to grind out some road results this week: they travel to New England on Wednesday and then to Portland on Sunday before starting a three game home stand.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME: COSMOS 1, JACKSONVILLE 0



Raul celebrates his game-winning goal. (NASL)

One year, one month, and eleven days: that's how long it's been since the Cosmos last suffered a loss at home in NASL play. NYC's green soccer team stretched that streak to 18 games with a win in the rain Saturday, edging 1-0 past the Jacksonville Armada thanks to this piece of skill from Raul:

"The important thing was for us to be calm, to be solid defensively, and at some point the game was going to give us something to be able to win," offered coach Giovanni Savarese after the match. "The special moment was given by Raul."

The win gives the Cosmos some sweet revenge against the Armada, who broke their 2015 unbeaten streak in July. It also pushes them within three points of Ottawa in the NASL Fall Season standings. Not that the fall matters much - the Cosmos have already qualified for the NASL playoffs after winning the Spring Season. They'll host their semi-final match at Coney Island's MCU Park on November 7th.

THE NO NETWORK: DALLAS 2, NYCFC 1



Back in the days NYCFC fans were happy to have a deal with YES. (@NYCFC)

A thought experiment: if a soccer team puts on a good performance while losing on the road, and no one is able to watch it, does it count?

NYCFC went on the road to Dallas, desperately needing points to stay alive in the hunt for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. City hung in the match early and looked threatening, but two goals right before the interval put them deep in the hole. Dallas midfielder Tesho Akindele unleashed a laser when Jason Hernandez let he turn past him in the box. Then, to put an awful exclamation mark on the evening, Michel scored an olimpico, putting the ball in the net directly from the corner.

Coach Jason Kreis would pull all three of the team's star designated players in the second half, and astonishingly, the team looked better with more youth on the field. (Go figure?) Ned Grabavoy drew a penalty that Patrick Mullins converted to get NYCFC back into the game, but they could not find an equalizer to earn that critical road point. They remain stuck in ninth place in the East, and the odds of of passing sixth place Montreal (who hold a four point lead and three games in hang) grow increasingly long.

If there was a real travesty in the course of the match, it was that only about seven minutes were broadcast in the NYC area. NYCFC games are broadcast locally on YES, but there was no perceived consideration that the Yankees doubleheader with the Blue Jays might conflict with the NYCFC broadcast. When the first game ran into extra innings, and the second game wouldn't begin until 6:17, a conflict was inevitable - but no announcement came.

It was only announced to fans as the game was getting underway that the NYCFC game would not be put on an overflow channel. The only options provided were limited live streaming (through two cable providers), radio, or Twitter. Even when the Yankees game went into a half an hour rain delay in the sixth inning, YES kept the broadcast in their studio rather than cutting to Dallas.

When the game finally ended in the Bronx (the Yankees lost both games in the doubleheader, 9-5 and 10-7), there were only about ten minutes of play left in Dallas. YES cut to the game, waited until the final whistle, and then promptly cut back to the Yankees post-match press conference.

And naturally, social media screaming and jokes ensued - including some Yankees fans upset they were being treated as second class citizens. Sports wars!

So cool of the @YESNetwork to give us the privilege of watching this terrible Yankee game with no mention of the @NYCFC game. — Christian Polanco (@chrispolanco) September 13, 2015

It's a good thing @YESNetwork has a second channel on @DIRECTV which is showing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! Way to take care of fans @nycfc — Kevin Middendorf (@FMLKevin) September 13, 2015

Wonderful @YESNetwork waiting for the post game after a gut wrenching 9 hour double header & we're forced to watch soccer. Y is for #Yankees — Charmian Neary (@CharmianAgain) September 13, 2015

Please note. The next @YESNetwork @NYCFC broadcast will be 9/19. Unless it rains. They would really rather show rain. #NYCFC — Mark Garbowski (@mgarbowski) September 13, 2015

Andrew Marchand should ask Joe Girardi if he agrees with the YES Network's decision to show the last 4 awful innings instead of NYCFC-Dallas — Frank Isola (@FisolaNYDN) September 13, 2015

Those who really want to see the Dallas match can find it on YES this afternoon at 1PM. Those who would rather look forward can focus on NYCFC returning home for a double match week; City will host Toronto on Wednesday (for "Star Wars Night") and San Jose on Saturday. Those who would rather watch the Yankees try to not get swept at home by the Jays should turn to TBS at 1:05 PM.