With Henry, Angel, And Rafa Marquez In Tow, Red Bulls Building A Winner

By: Dave Martinez | August 2nd, 2010

henryangelembrace “I have never seen Juan Pablo Angel so happy to be fed a ball ever.”

That was my reaction when Thierry Henry sent in a pinpoint lob to the feat of the onrushing Colombian striker, which he buried into the back of the net, and followed up with an enormous, nearly loving caress of his newest teammate. It was the strongest indication to date of the endless possibilities this one signing can make on a franchise wrought in misfortune (the second strongest indication? Henry’s ability to read the field, play Angel into open space, and lead the Bulls to their second notch of the game).

Tomorrow, the Red Bulls will be holding a press conference to announce the signing of their third and final Designated Player, and with that, another move in becoming one of the leagues most dominant franchise.

You read that right; one of the leagues most dominant franchises.

It has been the dream of MLS since it’s inception; have two perennial powers in New York and Los Angeles representing the very best teams in the brightest and most important markets this country has to offer. Red Bull is making that dream a reality.

With Thierry Henry’s signing, the Bulls have already gone from being the improving overachievers to a serious threat in little over two weeks. With the pending press conference tomorrow, presumably to announce the signing of Rafa Marquez, they make yet another move to solidify the core of this team into a true contender.

With Marquez playing the distributor and stopper role in a diamond midfield, the Bulls will have the opportunity to transform their biggest weakness to one of it’s strongest assets. As recounted on these pages, Marquez strength comes as a leader and distributor, best highlighted by his play over the past year in the middle with Mexico. His inclusion will transform the look in the middle, making him the sole general of the backfield. Joel Lindpere will be able to return to his natural position on the left hand side of the pitch. The right midfield will suddenly have a plethora of natural position players ready to make an impact, including Jeremy Hall, Dane Richards, Irving Garcia, and even Macoumba Kandji, who has shown a propensity to adaptation as a mid. With a good attacking option in the middle of the pitch, like a Tony Tchani, Sinisa Ubiparipovic or the aforementioned Kandji, Rafa Marquez will have an open field of capable and dangerous players at his disposal to distribute to and help expose defenders league wide.

Like Henry, Marquez brings a resume a mile long with him to the position. His ability to command the respect of his teammates should yield a natural leadership role on the pitch that this midfield has desperately been seeking. With Henry and Angel taking the helm up top, Marquez marching the kids downfield, and Petke and Mendes offering the experience to guide the backlines, the Red Bulls find themselves with a team that, by MLS standards, has a steady and dangerous presence on all sides.

Quite a transformation from 2009, no?