Omir Fernandez reveals 'special' feeling scoring winner in Hudson River Derby

New York Red Bulls youngster Omir Fernandez has revealed the 'special' feeling that accompanied his winning goal against NYCFC on Saturday night.

The 22-year-old was born in the Bronx and is a product of the Red Bulls youth system, first joining the club in 2011, with only a short stay with Wake Forest breaking up his time with the club.

Fernandez has had to be patient for his minutes to this point, never playing more than 18 games in a regular season. Indeed, the forward has started in just four of his 17 appearances this season.

But after failing to find the net in his opening 14 games, Fernandez has found some form, scoring twice in his last three appearances to help the Red Bulls pick up seven vital points during that time.

His latest strike was the winning goal in the Red Bulls' second Hudson River Derby of the week - the two sides drew 1-1 on Wednesday - finding space inside the box and firing home underneath NYCFC goalkeeper Sean Johnson.

Speaking to reporters after the match (via MLSsoccer.com), Fernandez spoke of the emotions he felt scoring the goal, which were amplified by the fact his parents were in the stadium to watch the game.

“It was like so many emotions that at that time I cannot process," Fernandez said. "After I went into half-time, I started processing everything that kind of happened to me. It was special for me, you know, to score here in front of my parents. They probably drove 10 minutes from the house, so it was something meaningful for me to score and celebrate right in front of them.”

This three-game unbeaten run comes at a critical time for the Red Bulls, who have closed the gap on the playoff places to just seven points with nine games remaining.

The gravity of this latest victory is not lost on head coach Gerhard Struber, who credited his side's "determination" to beat a team eight places above them in the standings (though the gap is just nine points).

“I can feel in many moments that the determination, the desire come back, and in the end, I think we deserve the win,” Struber said in his post-match press conference. “Absolutely, it is a big win, it is a big feeling, and to win away against a team on this level.”

Up next for the Red Bulls is a home tie against the Philadelphia Union on Wednesday before they travel to FC Cincinnati at the weekend.