The former Arsenal midfielder’s side currently sit joint-first in the Eastern Conference with only three regular season games left.
Patrick Vieira’s New York City FC side may not have been in action on Saturday night, but results elsewhere across MLS mean they still managed to make history.
By virtue of the New York Red Bulls’ 1-0 win over the Montreal Impact, the club clinched their first-ever playoff berth in only their second year since entering the league, earning one of the Eastern Conference’s six spots with three regular season games to spare.
The Red Bulls and Toronto FC also secured their places in the postseason on the same night after Western Conference leaders FC Dallas became the first team to book their ticket last weekend, while the LA Galaxy will join them on Sunday if they beat the Seattle Sounders at the StubHub Center.
Despite having David Villa, Frank Lampard and Andrea Pirlo at their disposal, NYCFC’s success still comes as somewhat of a surprise after they finished their inaugural 2015 campaign with a disappointing eighth-place finish in the East.
With Vieira replacing former MLS Cup-winning head coach Jason Kreis in charge last November, expectations were low for this term given how foreign managers have traditionally struggled to adapt to the league’s unique rules and roster regulations, but after overcoming an embarrassing 7-0 home defeat to the Red Bulls in May, the former Arsenal and France midfielder has quickly put those concerns to bed.
Having scored an MLS-high 55 goals in 31 games, his side now sit joint-first in the East with the Red Bulls and Toronto on 48 points and boast the second-best away record in the league behind only TFC.
Friday night’s 4-1 win over the Chicago Fire also saw them close the gap to Supporters’ Shield leading Dallas to just five points after the Texas outfit could only draw 0-0 at Real Salt Lake on Saturday night, giving them an outside chance of silverware going into their final three regular season matches.
It has certainly been a positive start to life in the States for Vieira, who had previously spent two-and-a-half years as head coach of Manchester City’s Elite Development Squad before opting to begin his managerial career with their MLS-based sister club, and it could be about to get even better if they can carry their current form over into the playoffs.
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