Red Bulls out to avoid 5th straight draw vs. FC Cincinnati

The New York Red Bulls are aware that the 12-point gap between first and fourth place in the Eastern Conference could be tighter, if only they could protect leads and finish off opponents.

Failing to finish has been a source of major frustration for the Red Bulls, who hope to avoid a fifth straight draw Saturday night when they host second-place FC Cincinnati in Harrison, N.J., in the final game before the MLS takes a one-month break in the regular season for Leagues Cup.

New York (9-4-11, 38 points) have equaled the third-most draws in team history and sits 12 points behind conference leader Inter Miami (15-4-5, 50 points). The Red Bulls are one point ahead of fifth-place New York City FC and two ahead of Charlotte FC.

The Red Bulls are on a seven-game unbeaten streak but are only 1-0-6 in that span. They blew two one-goal leads to settle for a 2-2 draw with CF Montreal on Wednesday night.

Wikelman Carmona scored in the 18th minute and Sean Nealis was credited with a goal off a corner kick in the second half, but New York committed fouls that led to goals on set pieces.

"It's super frustrating," Red Bulls defender Dylan Nealis said. "I think you could look on both sides of the ball. Offensively, we need to put our chances away early and kill teams, and then defensively, we're giving away silly goals. I think the past few games kind of show it, but we just have to be better."

FC Cincinnati (15-6-3, 48 points) are trying to take over the lead in the East, as it currently sits two points behind Inter Miami.

The club is on its second losing streak of the season after a pair of disappointing home results. They followed up last Saturday's 3-1 loss to Charlotte with a 1-0 setback on Wednesday against the Chicago Fire.

Cincinnati conceded in the 69th minute and was blanked for the fourth time this season. It also played without leading scorer Luciano Acosta (11 goals), who missed his first game this season due to an ankle injury.

"We have to learn from this," Cincinnati midfielder Obinna Nwobodo said. "Just because we are missing guys, missing important pieces from our squad, we have other guys who step up and play. We look to win because we have belief in our squad. So we expect to win and have to work harder for the next game on Saturday."

--Field Level Media