The New York Red Bulls continue their push for the postseason as they host Toronto FC at Red Bull Arena.
Goals from Frankie Amaya and Elias Manoel gave New York a 2-0 lead inside the first 20 minutes against Supporters Shield winners FC Cincinnati before Luciano Acosta ensured a nervy finish with a penalty kick.
The Red Bulls held out for a 2-1 win and moved to within one point of ninth-place Montreal for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference playoff spot as they look for a 14th consecutive postseason berth.
Toronto have lost six straight matches and have won just once in their last 19 matches across all competitions, their latest setback coming in Charlotte as the Crown ran out 3-0 winners.
Among the biggest issues for the club are their defense as the Reds have conceded 65 goals, second-most in MLS.
Team news
Serge Ngoma (hamstring), Lewis Morgan (hip) and Dante Vanzeir (back) are out with Morgan and Vanzeir sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Dylan Nealis is expected to replace Hassan Ndam in the New York back line, joining brother Sean. Kyle Duncan should also start in defense.
Brandon Servania will miss the Reds' final two games after undergoing surgery to repair a ruptured ACL in his knee.
Deandre Kerr (back spasms), Latif Blessing (concussion) and Lorenzo Insigne (lower body) have all been ruled out.
Adama Diomande (lower body) and Raoul Petretta (back spasms) are also sidelined.
After playing in midweek, expect manager Terry Dunfield to make several changes to the lineup.
Predicted lineups
New York Red Bulls: Coronel; Tolkin, S. Nealis, D. Nealis, Duncan; Luquinhas, Amaya, Edelman, Fernandez; Barlow, Manoel
Toronto FC: Gavran; Mabika, Bradley, O'Neill; Gutiérrez, Vázquez, Coello, Osorio, Franklin; Owusu, Bernardeschi
Ones to watch
Omir Fernandez (New York Red Bulls)
The midfielder is the Red Bulls biggest offensive threat with six goals and has also contributed three assists. Fernandez has been in good form lately, scoring twice in the 5-3 win at DC United.
Luka Gavran (Toronto FC)
Despite some of the scorelines this season, Gavran has produced some impressive saves in starting the last three matches after being recalled from Toronto II after injuries to Johnson and Greg Ranjitsingh.
Previous meetings
In May, Toronto and New York played to a goalless draw with the Red Bulls extending their unbeaten run against the Reds to eight matches.
Federico Bernardeschi had a chance to open the scoring from the left of the penalty spot in the 29th minute but John Tolkin got a foot to his shot to deflect it out.
Early in the second half, Elias Manoel beat Toronto goalkeeper Sean Johnson with a cheeky chip shot but couldn't keep it under the crossbar.
Bernardeschi's cross was headed on goal by Lorenzo Insigne in the 79th minute only to see Carlos Coronel got his hands in front of it to deflect it away.
How to watch
The match will be streamed nationally on Apple TV + with Callum Williams as the play-by-play announcer and Calen Carr serving as analyst.
Kickoff is set for 7:30pm Eastern time.