“Knee-Jerk Reactions” is Hudson River Blue’s series of what we were thinking throughout the match. These were our unfiltered thoughts as they played out in real time — no editing, no revisions. Just raw, pure emotion.

Here were my reactions to New York City FC’s disappointing 1-0 loss to Atlanta United in the first leg of the Eastern Conference Semifinals:

First Half

1’: Come on, Boys!

5’: Strong work there from Mata. Also, tasty spin from Izzy

11’: We don’t look great right now

14’: Lorentowicz on some whack ish...

17’: C’mon, Mata...

21’: Welp

24’: Phew! No goal after all

34’: Game is getting out of hand. We need to snap into it

37’: That sucks. Series feels over already. We have no answer out there. And even if we squeak out a goal, who really thinks we’ll do well on the road?

45+4: That’s a foul. Somehow...

HT: Poor. Poor all the way around. Unless Domé can figure it out, this game (and series) is all but over

Second Half

55’: We don’t look great

60’: Just can’t get a break

82’: Medina just isn’t DP quality

90’: Johnson kept us from REALLY being screwed

FT: LOL! Absolute joke.

I apologize for my lack of activity in the second half. In between screaming profanity at my TV and being generally underwhelmed with our attacking presence towards the end, I found it hard to write anything.