New York City FC continued its red-hot start to 2026, defeating the Colorado Rapids 3-1 on a cold Saturday night at Yankee Stadium.
Nico Fernández Mercau notched a first-half brace, but right before halftime, Colorado winger Darren Yapi scored against the run of play.
NYCFC defended its one-goal lead and got a late goal from Talles Magno to seal the victory and the club's third straight win, drawing them level with Nashville SC at the top of the Eastern Conference in the early going.
Here are four thoughts from the win in the Boogie Down Bronx.
Hudson River Blue Staff
1. Nico keeps it rolling
Once it became clear that it would take some time for NYCFC to sign a replacement for Alonso Martínez, a looming question arose: Who would score the goals?
Although it's only four games into the season, New York City seems to already have its answer: Nico Fernández Mercau. The Designated Player scored his third and fourth goals of the season to give NYCFC a commanding early lead over Colorado.
In the 21st minute, Fernández Mercau opportunistically pounced on a loose ball and fired a shot at Colorado goalkeeper Nicholas Hansen, which was saved, but rebounded directly back in front of the goal. Fernández Mercau collected the loose change, slotting the ball past Hansen and two other Colorado defenders.
Nico Fernández Mercau scores his third goal of the season | Courtesy New York City FC, Apple TV
Fernández Mercau's second goal of the night was even better: The Argentine rifled home a free kick — striking it low, but dipping it over the Colorado wall and past Hansen's near post, leaving the goalkeeper flat-footed.
Nico Fernández Mercau scores a free kick | Courtesy New York City FC, Apple TV
It's still too early to tell if Fernández Mercau playing at the No 9 will make up for the loss of Martínez, but scoring four goals in four games is nothing to scoff at, especially for an attacking midfielder playing as a striker.
2. Punished, briefly, for a defensive switch-off
With New York City up 2-0 deep into first-half stoppage time, a brief but costly defensive switch-off allowed Colorado to strike a goal back. Rafael Navarro dribbled through NYCFC's midfield with ease and picked out Darren Yapi, who blasted it powerfully past Matt Freese to put Colorado on the board.
Darren Yapi makes it a 2-1 game | Courtesy Colorado Rapids, Apple TV
Midfielders Keaton Parks and Aiden O'Neill were out of position — giving Navarro tons of open space to drive forward— while Kevin O'Toole was caught ball-watching, allowing for Yapi to find space behind.
In the second half, NYCFC hunkered down and held onto the one-goal lead. Head coach Pascal Jansen brought on Raul Gustavo for Agustín Ojeda, allowing for Kai Trewin to move into the midfield.
Trewin helped solidify things in the middle, and NYCFC kept Colorado off the board the rest of the way en route to a third straight win.
3. Talles Magno is back
Highly-touted Designated Player Talles Magno returned to New York City in 2026 after an unsuccessful loan spell at Corinthians. The 23-year-old picked up an injury in preseason and played just 31 minutes through the first three games of the season.
But against Colorado, Talles Magno came on in the 63rd minute and made the most of his extended time off the bench, scoring his first goal of the season and first for NYCFC since July 17, 2024.
Talles Magno scores his first goal of the season | Courtesy New York City FC, Apple TV
Maxi Moralez found Talles running in behind, and he calmly placed it past Hansen with a left-footed finish. It was Moralez's third assist of the season and fifth all-time against Colorado.
After playing a season-high in minutes against Colorado and scoring, Talles Magno could very well be back to the player fans fell in love with in 2021.
4. Best start to a season since 2018
After four games, NYCFC remains undefeated, recording three wins and a draw.
The last time New York City was undefeated in its four games of a season was 2018, when they opened the year with five wins and two draws (17 points) before dropping their first game on Matchday 8.
Could NYCFC keep this form rolling? It won't be easy: Inter Miami CF, who defeated New York City 4-0 and 5-1 in their two most recent meetings, comes to Yankee Stadium for a Sunday matinee matchup.
After a shocking season-opening loss to LAFC, Miami is undefeated in its last three games (2W-1D-0L). Even though Miami lost Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets to retirement this offseason, NYCFC still has its work cut out against Lionel Messi, Germán Berterame, and others.
