Sunday evening saw New York Red Bulls beat New York City FC in what we’d class as a right old ding-dong of a derby.
It all began before kick-off when rival fans were involved in a punch-up outside a pub near the stadium in Newark, New Jersey, showing that our American brethren are just as au fait with hooligan decorum as their European counterparts…
In New Jersey and immediately encounter crowd trouble ahead of the New York derby (Red Bulls-City). Video: pic.twitter.com/slY3hYn5aM
— Rob Harris (@RobHarris) August 9, 2015
The needle continued inside the arena, though it was much more good-natured and above board – with the Red Bulls fans kicking things off with a chucklesome jab at NYCFC’s ageing midfield axis in the form of a huge “City Retirement Home” banner…
Things escalated from there, with David Villa even tearing Felipe Martins’ shorts right in half at one point to expose his slightly confusing underwear arrangement…
As for the actual football match, Red Bulls ended the evening with the spoils as goals from Bradley Wright-Phillips and Martins (with a fresh pair of shorts) securing the 2-0 victory.