Emil Forsberg leads New York Red Bulls to the Eastern Conference semi-finals

Former Bundesliga player Emil Forsberg has led the New York Red Bulls to the semi-finals of the Eastern Conference in Major League Soccer. The 33-year-old Swede was the decisive man on the pitch in the second play-off game of the first round against Columbus Crew.

Forsberg, who played for RB Leipzig for years, set up Dante Vanzeir (64) to equalize the score at 1:1 in the 5:4 penalty shoot-out and scored himself with a penalty (80) to take a 2:1 lead. The late equalizer in stoppage time was only a brief dampener, as the hosts had the better nerves in the thriller from the spot.

With their second win in the best-of-three series, New York surprisingly ensured an early exit for defending champions Columbus. The franchise of beverage manufacturer Red Bull is back in the Eastern Conference semi-finals for the first time since 2018.