Maxime Chanot says the New York City squad are building a strong team spirit with a positive culture and atmosphere in the locker room.
The Boys in Blue are back in action this weekend, looking to return to winning ways with three points against Nashville SC at Citi Field.
Nick Cushing’s side have recorded a mixed start to the year with two wins, two defeats and three ties – most recently last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Atlanta United.
Reflecting on the campaign so far, Chanot says there is no panic concerning results at this stage of the season, with the team still developing chemistry together on and off the pitch, adding the players are fully committed to giving their all for the badge.
“The way the players live together is just amazing,” the defender stated.
“This year, I think we kept the legacy regarding the last few years – nothing has changed. Many players have left the Club, we all know that, and new players came in… but nothing else has changed.
“The results right now are not that bad. We only lost two games, and the first one was an opening game in Nashville, which is always a tricky game.
“You’ve seen the last six games – we only lost one game. I can understand some people are doubtful regarding the results, but I’m very positive about the effort we all made for each other, and the way we play.
“Now, we've got two games at home, and if we get six points after these games, we're going to be in a very good situation.
“I can tell you right away again: we have a really nice atmosphere, everybody's sticking with the gameplan, and we’re just happy to be there, to defend the NYCFC logo.”
Nashville emerged victorious with a 2-0 win in the season opener at GEODIS Park, and have gone on to record a league-best five clean sheets since.
However, with the City Boys on home soil this time around, Chanot anticipates a completely different contest at Citi Field.
“Nashville, we all know them. They’re a very good team, but it’s going to be a different game compared to the first time we played against them,” he continued.
“They played at home, that’s a big strength for them. Now, we are going to be in front of our fans, so obviously it’s going to be great here for us.
“We know they’ve got a very good defense – the way they defend all together, even with the midfield, they are pretty strong – but we have a gameplan for that.
“We have enough quality in this squad to make sure we can beat them, and we’ll try to score goals against them.
“We might play a few games away from Yankee Stadium… but we have a good record at Citi Field.
“It doesn’t matter where we play as long as we play in front of our fans. We are looking forward to playing in front of them. I’m sure it’s going to be a great help for us to try to beat Nashville.
“I was happy with the point we got from the last game. Atlanta is a decent team with very good players – probably one of the best teams we’ve played this year.
“We are very happy as a group, I’m very happy as a player, and we are just looking forward to playing this game against Nashville.”
NYCFC are back on home soil this weekend for the second of our three-game home stand.
Tickets for the game are now available. Don't miss your chance to cheer on the City Boys!
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