# 2020 New York City FC season

The 2020 New York City FC season was the club's sixth season of competition and its sixth in the top tier of American soccer, Major League Soccer. New York City FC usually played its home games at Yankee Stadium in the New York City borough of The Bronx. However, the 2020 MLS season saw the club play several of their home games at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey due to scheduling conflicts at both Yankee Stadium and Citi Field as well as winterization procedures during the 2020 CONCACAF Champions League which were unavoidable.
The club's season began on February 20, 2020, with their CONCACAF Champions League fixture against San Carlos.

## Player movement
### In

Per Major League Soccer and club policies, terms of the deals do not get disclosed.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Transferred from | Fee/notes | Date |
| 24 | DF | Tayvon Gray | New York City FC | Promoted from the Academy | November 26, 2019 |
| 55 | MF | Keaton Parks | Benfica | Made permanent by the Club | January 8, 2020 |
| 23 | MF | Gedion Zelalem | Sporting Kansas City | Free transfer | January 8, 2020 |
| 20 | DF | Guðmundur Þórarinsson | Norrköping | Free transfer | January 10, 2020 |
| 26 | MF | Nicolás Acevedo | Liverpool Montevideo | Undisclosed | March 2, 2020 |

### Out

Per Major League Soccer and club policies, terms of the deals do not get disclosed.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Transferred to | Fee/notes | Date |
| 80 | MF | Justin Haak | Hartford Athletic | Loan out | September 9, 2020 |
| 21 | MF | Dan Bedoya | Atlético Pantoja | Option declined | November 20, 2019 |
| | GK | Jeff Caldwell | New England Revolution | Option declined | November 20, 2019 |
| 5 | DF | Eric Miller | Nashville SC | Option declined | November 20, 2019 |
| 19 | DF | Abdi Mohamed | Greenville Triumph | Option declined | November 20, 2019 |
| 12 | MF | Ebenezer Ofori | VfB Stuttgart | Loan return | November 20, 2019 |
| 2 | DF | Ben Sweat | Inter Miami CF | Expansion pick | November 20, 2019 |

## Roster

    As of November 4, 2020
| Squad No. | Name | Position(s) | Since | Date of birth (age) | Signed from | Games Played | Goals Scored |
| Goalkeepers |||||||||
| 1 | Sean Johnson | GK | 2016 | (1989-05-31) May 31, 1989 (age 35) | Chicago Fire FC | 129 | 0 |
| 13 | Luis Barraza | GK | 2019 | (1996-11-08) November 8, 1996 (age 27) | Chicago FC United | 0 | 0 |
| 41 | Brad Stuver | GK | 2018 | (1991-04-16) April 16, 1991 (age 33) | Columbus | 11 | 0 |
| Defenders |||||||||
| 3 | Anton Tinnerholm | RB | 2018 | (1991-02-26) February 26, 1991 (age 33) | Malmö | 98 | 9 |
| 4 | Maxime Chanot | CB | 2016 | (1990-01-21) January 21, 1990 (age 34) | Kortrijk | 110 | 5 |
| 6 | Alexander Callens | CB | 2017 | (1992-05-04) May 4, 1992 (age 32) | Numancia | 124 | 7 |
| 20 | Guðmundur Þórarinsson | LB | 2020 | (1992-04-15) April 15, 1992 (age 32) | IFK Norrköping | 21 | 0 |
| 22 | Rónald Matarrita | LB | 2016 | (1994-07-09) July 9, 1994 (age 30) | Alajuelense | 121 | 4 |
| 24 | Tayvon Gray | CB | 2017 | (2002-08-19) August 19, 2002 (age 22) | New York City Academy | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Joseph Scally | RB | 2018 | (2002-12-31) December 31, 2002 (age 21) | New York City Academy | 9 | 0 |
| 33 | Sebastien Ibeagha | CB | 2018 | (1992-01-21) January 21, 1992 (age 32) | San Antonio | 63 | 0 |
| Midfielders |||||||||
| 8 | Alexander Ring (captain) | CM | 2017 | (1991-04-09) April 9, 1991 (age 33) | Kaiserslautern | 125 | 10 |
| 10 | Maximiliano Moralez | AM | 2017 | (1987-02-27) February 27, 1987 (age 37) | León | 120 | 24 |
| 14 | Juan Pablo Torres | DM | 2019 | (1999-07-06) July 6, 1999 (age 25) | Lokeren | 9 | 0 |
| 15 | Tony Rocha | CM | 2019 | (1993-08-21) August 21, 1993 (age 31) | Orlando City SC | 31 | 1 |
| 16 | James Sands | DM | 2017 | (2000-07-06) July 6, 2000 (age 24) | New York Soccer Club | 45 | 0 |
| 23 | Gedion Zelalem | CM | 2020 | (1997-01-26) January 26, 1997 (age 27) | Sporting Kansas City | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | Nicolás Acevedo | DM | 2020 | (1999-04-14) April 14, 1999 (age 25) | Liverpool Montevideo | 15 | 0 |
| 55 | Keaton Parks | CM | 2019 | (1997-08-06) August 6, 1997 (age 27) | Benfica | 54 | 6 |
| Forwards |||||||||
| 9 | Héber | CF | 2019 | (1991-08-10) August 10, 1991 (age 33) | Rijeka | 47 | 16 |
| 11 | Valentín Castellanos | CF | 2018 | (1998-10-03) October 3, 1998 (age 26) | Atlético Torque | 73 | 19 |
| 17 | Gary Mackay-Steven | LW / RW | 2019 | (1990-08-31) August 31, 1990 (age 34) | Aberdeen | 37 | 3 |
| 19 | Jesús Medina | RW / AM | 2018 | (1997-04-30) April 30, 1997 (age 27) | Libertad | 78 | 15 |
| 28 | Alexandru Mitriță | LW / AM | 2019 | (1995-02-08) February 8, 1995 (age 29) | Universitatea Craiova | 51 | 18 |
| 29 | Ismael Tajouri-Shradi | RW | 2018 | (1994-03-28) March 28, 1994 (age 30) | Austria Wien | 72 | 22 |
* Included the caps in the 2 games of the knockout stage in the "MLS is Back Tournament".

## Competitions
### MLS
#### League tables
##### Eastern Conference

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | PPG | Qualification |
| 3 | Columbus Crew SC (C) | 23 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 36 | 21 | +15 | 41 | 1.78 | Qualification for the playoffs first round and CONCACAF Champions League |
| 4 | Orlando City SC | 23 | 11 | 4 | 8 | 40 | 25 | +15 | 41 | 1.78 | Qualification for the playoffs first round and Leagues Cup |
| 5 | New York City FC | 23 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 37 | 25 | +12 | 39 | 1.70 | Qualification for the playoffs first round and Leagues Cup |
| 6 | New York Red Bulls | 23 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 29 | 31 | −2 | 32 | 1.39 | Qualification for the playoffs first round |
| 7 | Nashville SC | 23 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 24 | 22 | +2 | 32 | 1.39 | Qualification for the playoffs play-in round |
* ↑ As MLS Cup 2020 champions
* ↑ On June 10, 2020, Major League Soccer announced that Nashville SC would switch from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference for the remainder of the 2020 season.

##### Overall

2020 MLS overall standings :
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | PPG | Qualification |
| 5 | Orlando City SC | 23 | 11 | 4 | 8 | 40 | 25 | +15 | 41 | 1.78 | 2021 Leagues Cup |
| 6 | Seattle Sounders FC | 22 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 44 | 23 | +21 | 39 | 1.77 | 2021 Leagues Cup |
| 7 | New York City FC | 23 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 37 | 25 | +12 | 39 | 1.70 | 2021 Leagues Cup |
| 8 | Portland Timbers (M) | 23 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 46 | 35 | +11 | 39 | 1.70 | 2021 CONCACAF Champions League |
| 9 | Minnesota United FC | 21 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 36 | 26 | +10 | 34 | 1.62 | |
* ↑ As 4th, Eastern Conference (MLS2)
* ↑ As 2nd, Western Conference (MLS3)
* ↑ As 5th, Eastern Conference (MLS4)
* ↑ As MLS is Back tournament winners (USA3)

##### MLS Cup Playoffs
### U.S. Open Cup

Due to their final standings for the 2019 season, the NYCFC were scheduled to enter the competition in the Fourth Round, to be played May 19–20. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic, however, forced the U.S. Soccer Federation to cancel the tournament on August 17, 2020.

### MLS is Back Tournament
#### Group A

Group A results :
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Orlando City SC (H) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 7 | Advanced to knockout stage |
| 2 | Philadelphia Union | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 7 | Advanced to knockout stage |
| 3 | New York City FC | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 3 | Advanced to knockout stage |
| 4 | Inter Miami CF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 | −3 | 0 | |

#### Knockout stage
## Statistics
### Appearances and goals

    Last updated on November 21, 2020
* (Only the 3 games of the "MLS is Back Tournament", also valid for the MLS regular season, are considered).
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | MLS | MLS | MLS Cup Playoffs | MLS Cup Playoffs | U.S. Open Cup | U.S. Open Cup | CONCACAF Champions League | CONCACAF Champions League |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||||||
| 1 | GK | USA | Sean Johnson | 27 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 13 | GK | USA | Luis Barraza | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 41 | GK | USA | Brad Stuver | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Defenders ||||||||||||||
| 3 | DF | SWE | Anton Tinnerholm | 28 | 4 | 22+1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | LUX | Maxime Chanot | 25 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | PER | Alexander Callens | 27 | 4 | 22 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
| 22 | DF | CRC | Rónald Matarrita | 26 | 0 | 19+2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 24 | DF | USA | Tayvon Gray | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | DF | USA | Joseph Scally | 6 | 0 | 1+3 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 33 | DF | USA | Sebastien Ibeagha | 10 | 0 | 3+4 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||||||
| 8 | MF | FIN | Alexander Ring | 27 | 4 | 23 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | ARG | Maximiliano Moralez | 16 | 1 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 14 | MF | USA | Juan Pablo Torres | 2 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | MF | USA | Tony Rocha | 12 | 0 | 0+10 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 16 | MF | USA | James Sands | 19 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 19 | MF | PAR | Jesús Medina | 26 | 5 | 22 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | ISL | Gudmundur Thorarinsson | 21 | 0 | 7+12 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 23 | MF | USA | Gedion Zelalem | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | MF | URU | Nicolás Acevedo | 14 | 0 | 1+11 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 55 | MF | USA | Keaton Parks | 27 | 3 | 20+3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 |
| 21 | MF | USA | Andres Jasson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| Forwards ||||||||||||||
| 9 | FW | BRA | Héber | 14 | 4 | 11+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 11 | FW | ARG | Valentín Castellanos | 27 | 6 | 14+8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2+2 | 0 |
| 17 | FW | SCO | Gary Mackay-Steven | 25 | 2 | 11+11 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 28 | FW | ROU | Alexandru Mitriță | 15 | 5 | 8+4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 29 | FW | LBY | Ismael Tajouri-Shradi | 19 | 3 | 6+9 | 3 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 |
| Players who have made an appearance or had a squad number this season but have left the club ||||||||||||||