The New York Red Bulls are having an absolutely wretched MLS season. They are rock bottom on 10 points from 21 matches, 17 points behind the eighth and final playoff place. What makes the Red Bulls' situation more precarious is that the eighth placed team, Colorado Rapids, have three matches in hand and could stretch that gap to at least 20 points or more. So the MLS playoffs are all but out of the Red Bulls' reach, and the CONCACAF Champions League is all that is left to play for.
Should the Red Bulls concede this season's MLS campaign, give the second-string and developmental players more experience, and concentrate the first team on the CCL? Cruz Azul reached a point where they conceded the Clausura tournament last season and focused on the Champions League, progressing all the way to the final. The differences between Cruz Azul and the Red Bulls are the roster and level of foreign talent in the team. Juan Pablo Angel is still a very good player, but a club like Cruz Azul has at least two or three players in their squad like him. At any rate, such a decision (assuming that the Red Bulls take it) would be extremely controversial in MLS among opposing clubs, fans, and the League office. MLS hasn't done a very good job of accommodating the schedules of its CCL participants, and they will take a dim view of clubs that put forward a weakened squad for League matches.
Perhaps the CCL is Osorio's last chance with the club, but I doubt the competition has entered the minds of Red Bull in Austria, so it may not make much of a difference.
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