Dante Vanzeir scored his second goal of the playoffs and added an assist to help the visiting New York Red Bulls to a 2-0 victory over New York City FC in Saturday’s Eastern Conference semifinal.
Felipe Carballo added his second goal of the postseason on an early long-distance strike that helped the seventh-seeded Red Bulls reach their first conference final since 2018.
They’ll face the winner of Sunday’s second East semifinal between Orlando and Atlanta, and will host that game if Atlanta advances.
Carlos Coronel made six saves to keep the clean sheet and earn RBNY’s first win over their city rivals this season in the first-ever postseason Hudson River Derby fixture.
The best of those stops thwarted NYCFC leading scorer Alonso Martinez, one only two minutes after Vanzeir doubled RBNY’s lead in the first half and one only three minutes into the second half.
Thiago Martins also struck the woodwork late for the sixth-seeded Cityzens, who were in pursuit of a second MLS Cup title in three seasons.
Carballo sent the Red Bulls in front in the 16th minute.
Coronel drove the ball from his own penalty area toward NYCFC’s, prompting an initial headed clearance attempt. Vanzeir won the second header, and the ball dropped to the feet of Carballo, who took a touch to control it before unfurling a powerful left-footed strike that beat the diving Matt Freese to the top left corner.
Nine minutes later, it was Vanzeir in the right place following an aerial challenge, finding the ball at his feet following a corner and dispatching it nearly off the inside of the right post.
The only blemish of the evening for the visitors came in the second half, when Sean Nealis departed in the 62th minute after a collision with City’s Justin Haak.
Replays appeared to show Nealis losing consciousness from the initial impact, though he walked off the field under his own power.
The Red Bulls swept the defending-champion and second-seeded Columbus Crew to advance — winning 1-0 on the road and in a shootout at home after a 2-2 draw in regulation.
NYCFC advanced by sweeping third-seeded FC Cincinnati with a 3-1 victory at Citi Field and a 6-5 shootout win after a scoreless duel on the road.
The Red Bulls have qualified for 14 postseasons in a row but have never won MLS Cup.
Information from Field Level Media and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
