New York City FC continued their strong start to the season with a third consecutive win, defeating Colorado Rapids 3-1 under the lights at Yankee Stadium. Two first-half goals from Nico Fernández Mercau gave the Pigeons all three points, while Talles Magno put the icing on the cake late in the second half with his first goal since returning to the club in the offseason.
New York City remain undefeated in the 2026 Major League Soccer season, with 10 points after four games. That puts them atop the Eastern Conference for the second straight week, gives the Pigeons their best start to a season since 2019, and hammers home the argument that New York City will contend this year.
Despite the long-term injury dealt to Alonso Martínez, Pascal Jansen has seemingly found a tactical workaround, all stemming from the dynamism and tenacity of Nico in attack.
New York City: 1.8 xG, 12 shots, 8 shots on target, 42% possession, 394 passes, 81.2% pass accuracy, 14 fouls, 4 corners, 1 save
Colorado: 1.2 xG, 9 shots, 2 shots on target, 58% possession, 570 passes, 89.5% pass accuracy, 25 fouls, 4 corners, 5 saves
Goals:
• New York City, Nico Fernández Mercau, 22'
• New York City, Nico Fernández Mercau, 45'
• Colorado, Darren Yapi, 45' +4
• New York City, Talles Magno, 86'
Attendance: 18,079
Nico, the No 9
The pressure was placed squarely on Nico's shoulders going into 2026 after Alonso went down last fall. He was the club's big-money signing in 2025, and was expected to improve New York City's consistency in front of goal drastically. Though it took the former Elché forward a few weeks to get up to speed last year, Nico ended the season with an impressive run in the MLS Cup Playoffs, setting the stage for a breakout campaign in 2026.
Four games into this season, and Nico has been exactly as advertised, if not even more impactful than initially anticipated. With his brace Saturday night, the Argentine now has four goals in four MLS matches, just one off Dallas FC's Petar Musa for the MLS Golden Boot lead. But even beyond his goals, Nico is consistently providing sparks from attacking midfield, operating in tandem with Maxi Moralez, who's also having an impressive start to the year.
Jansen has drilled the high press into this New York City side, and it's paying dividends. Nico's opener vs Colorado came as a direct result of that high press, forcing a mistake from Colorado goalkeeper Nicolas Hansen to win back possession. Yet, Nico still had bodies between him and the goal, and had to shimmy his way into space before firing an effort on frame. Hansen did well to parry it away from close range, but Nico corralled the rebound before slotting past the American.
Nico does the dirty work to open the scoring | Apple TV and newyorkcityfc.com
It was a moment of individual brilliance: This is why New York City signed him in the first place. The poise, the confidence, the ball control, all intangibles of an X-factor player, and Nico had them all on display to open the scoring.
But the brilliance didn't stop there. Another skillset at Nico's disposal is his ability with set pieces. The Argentine has been one of the club's main corner takers since his arrival, along with free kicks and penalties. He already has one penalty to his name this season, and he can add a direct free-kick to that set-piece list after Saturday.
Nico with a sneaky finish to double the lead | Apple TV and newyorkcityfc.com
On the cusp of first-half stoppage time, New York City found themselves with a golden opportunity to double the lead before the break. Maxi did well to win a free kick on the far side of the Colorado penalty area, giving Nico a chance to swing a cross toward the mass of bodies around the penalty spot. Instead, the Argentine took a chance, read Hansen's eyes, and snuck a curling effort through the two-man Rapids wall and past the American in net.
A confident and perfectly executed set piece from a forward in peak form? It's exactly what NYCFC fans were hoping for. Though the Pigeons conceded a well-worked team goal from Colorado just a few minutes later, reducing the lead as the two squads headed into halftime, the mood inside Yankee Stadium was infectious.
The Talles Magno Experience is back
After more than 80 minutes of The Nico Show, the fans were then blessed with the return of The Talles Mango Experience. It was a truly remarkable sight when Talles Magno found the back of the net in the 86th minute, considering the former Brazilian starlet hadn't scored for New York City since 2024.
Pascal Jansen and the NYCFC front office have made it clear that Talles Magno is part of the plans for the Pigeons in 2026, with the Brazilian's versatility and distinct skills consistently highlighted as impactful tools for the squad this season. That said, the Brazilian has yet to operate at full match fitness since returning from his loan with Corinthians in Brazil, which led to speculation over the impact he'll make for the Pigeons in 2026.
Well, we're four games into his return, and he made four appearances off the bench — and already found the back of the net.
Welcome home, Talles | Apple TV and newyorkcityfc.com
As for the goal itself, it was professional and composed. Moralez grabbed his third assist of the campaign after he squeezed a perfectly-weighted through ball between the Rapids defense. Talles ran on to it, drawing defenders and the goalkeeper to the left, before firing his effort into the bottom right corner. His teammates mobbed him to celebrate with a long and drawn-out team hug as the fans rained down cheers.
It may be a few more weeks until we see Talles Magno start the match on the pitch, rather than the bench, but what is clear now is that the Brazilian has a future with this team. The front office believes it. Jansen believes it. His teammates believe it. And soon, the majority of New York City fans may too. Until then, let's relish the return of the Talles Magno Experience, one of the hottest tickets in the Five Boroughs.
Matthew Mangam
The East is on notice
After New York City's 5-0 demolition of Orlando City last week, alarm bells around the Eastern Conference began ringing: The Pigeons had seven points from three matches, all against competent opposition. But there was a counter-narrative: All three results came against teams reduced to 10 players, NYCFC are still without a true No 9, and the playoff success in 2025 was the product of a fluky run of form.
This result should put many of these reservations to bed.
Nico Fernández looks every bit the high-impact designated player fans were promised last summer. Agustín Ojeda has taken a significant step in his overall development. Maxi Moralez continues to age like a fine wine, and Tayvon Gray is getting better with every game. New York City's 11 goals in four games are joint-best leading into Sunday's game, even with San Diego FC, while the team have allowed just three goals this season — and one of those was a penalty that was questionably awarded to Philadelphia Union.
The attack was a big concern going into 2026, but so far it's among the best in the league. The defense, as expected, has looked solid and steady. There is still plenty of soccer left to be played this year, but early doors, New York City look primed to shake things up atop the East.
• Colorado, Hamzat Ojedrian, yellow card, foul 8′
• New York City, Nico Fernández Mercau, yellow card, foul 31′
• New York City, Aiden O'Neill, yellow card, foul 39′
• Colorado, Darren Yapi, yellow card, foul 42′
Officials
• Referee: Brandon Stevis
• Assistant referees: Logan Brow, Jeremy Kieso
• Fourth official: Sergii Boiko
• VAR: Kevin Stott
• Assistant VAR: Jeff Muschik
