Soccer <\/p>\n
Spite will hang in the air, and tackles will roll in hard and heavy at Sports Illustrated Stadium when New York City FC<\/a> visit Red Bull New York<\/a> for Walmart Saturday Showdown this weekend (7:30 pm ET |\u00a0Apple TV<\/a>).<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Few fixtures in MLS feature the level of bad blood found in the Hudson River Derby. It\u2019s similar across all levels, from youth clashes in MLS NEXT all the way up to the senior teams, Red Bulls midfielder Adri Mehmeti<\/a> explained to MLSsoccer.com from his club’s brand-new training facility<\/a> in Morris Township, New Jersey on Thursday.<\/p>\n \u201cThroughout the whole academy, throughout all the ranks, second team, first team, they’re just bragging rights in a derby like that \u2013 one of the biggest derbies in the league, probably,\u201d said the homegrown standout, who\u2019s been with his club since age 11.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery time I step into one of those games, I just want to give my all and give everything I have, leave the field with no regrets. And I always try to set the tone: try to put in a big tackle to show that me and all of our teammates, the whole group, are here to do business.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) April 12, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Vowing to get stuck in early is a common tendency among defensive midfielders, and Mehmeti brings plenty to the table in that department. FotMob data places him in the 89th percentile for defensive contributions, and he ranks similarly highly in tackles, interceptions, recoveries and other related categories (while also posting the highest overall rating among RBNY\u2019s usual starting XI).<\/p>\n Yet what\u2019s truly set him apart in his breakout 2026, reportedly drawing the attention of some of Europe\u2019s biggest clubs at the tender age of 17, is what he\u2019s done with the ball at his feet, the game unfolding one step ahead in his head.<\/p>\n \u201cHe is composed and calm and wise beyond his years. Usually when you watch young players play, there’s a nervous energy about them,\u201d noted MLS on Apple TV<\/a> analyst Dax McCarty, a two-time All-Star in his own distinguished central-midfield career who won two Supporters’ Shields with the Red Bulls in the 2010s.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I was young, my first thought whenever I either subbed into a game or started a game was that I had to be running a million miles an hour all the time. With Mehmeti, it’s actually the total opposite. He almost plays the game in a slow way, but his brain plays it in the fastest way possible, which is one of the highest compliments I can give a young player.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n 17-year-old Adri Mehmeti has impressed for @NewYorkRedBulls<\/a> this season<\/p>\n No player in MLS has completed more line-breaking passes \ud83c\udfaf<\/p>\n His line-breaking pass rate of 20.6% would rank 2nd in Europe’s Top 5 Leagues, only behind Adam Wharton \ud83d\udc40 pic.twitter.com\/Kp6PMgUkaC<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2014 Gradient Sports (@Gradient_Sports) May 11, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n The likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Bayern Munich are said to be tracking the Staten Island native, drawn by a tantalizing toolkit that\u2019s made him arguably MLS’s top engine-room prospect. It all traces back to a ball-is-life household that immersed this child of Albanian immigrants in a 24\/7 soccer culture from his toddler years.<\/p>\n That\u2019s credit to his father Vani<\/a>, a semiprofessional player during his younger days and a lifelong lover of the beautiful game who dreamed of someday raising a professional. Coaching Adri\u2019s early youth teams was only part of it. Dad also watched countless pro and international matches with his son and set up regular games and drills around the house to hone his technique.<\/p>\n \u201cFor me, it was always the extra hours that I put in, with my dad [or] by myself. It helped a lot,\u201d noted Adri. \u201cSo when I could come back into training the next day, I could always be one or two steps ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n Father and son also dig into the training-session footage RBNY circulate to their players, and even crunch tape from their own backyard. The family\u2019s home security cameras capture their one-on-one games, an example of which can be viewed in\u00a0this profile<\/a> by Metro Soccer Report.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have the Ring camera on top of our garage. So if we ever practice there, we always get the clips after and just look at them and have a good time,\u201d said Adri with a grin.<\/p>\n \u201cI come home from training, and if [Vani]\u2019s not taking me to training, there’s soccer on the TV. So he always has a ball at his feet as well. He’s always like, ‘Hey, let’s do a couple headers here, let’s do something to touch the ball.’ If it\u2019s not anything crazy that’s not going to get me tired, I mean, why not? There’s always a ball, there’s always something football in the house.\u201d<\/p>\n That focus on fundamentals crafted a sturdy foundation that Adri credits for his ability to read the game and execute at a high level, all while outfoxing bigger, faster opponents as he climbed the RBNY ranks. As he grew, his skills blossomed, a process that accelerated once he joined the Red Bulls\u2019 regional development system.<\/p>\n \u201cEven in the offseason, I would train with my dad,\u201d recalled Mehmeti. \u201cWe\u2019d do some runs, and he pushed me; I always pushed him.<\/p>\n \u201cI remember the first time I beat him one-v-one. I couldn’t stop talking about it for like, five days, six days,\u201d he added. \u201cThat was a big milestone.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Adri Mehmeti might just be a gem for the USMNT \u2728<\/p>\n Red Bull New York’s teenage midfielder has been one of the breakout stars of the MLS season, taking inspiration from one of the best players in soccer history.@joeclowery<\/a> \ud83d\udcfd\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/Cje0lU43MK<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2014 Backheeled (@Backheeled) May 12, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n The Mehmeti family operates a trucking company, and Vani tries to synchronize long-haul trips with RBNY\u2019s schedule so he can catch their road games. One such occasion enabled him to witness Adri\u2019s first career MLS goal, a key strike in their impressive 2-2 draw<\/a> at reigning champions Inter Miami CF<\/a> last month.<\/p>\n A video of Dad\u2019s tearful congratulations was eventually picked up by major media outlets, introducing their backstory to Mehmeti\u2019s rapidly growing ranks of admirers worldwide.<\/p>\n \u201cI showed him the video when it came out,\u201d explained Adri, \u201cand it was probably, what, 100 likes, and then it went viral on FOX Soccer or something. So that was a cool moment for him.<\/p>\n \u201cHe tries to come to as many away games as possible for me. I’m so thankful for that, that I have his support. He’s been a big help in my career, in my life, and I’m just so thankful for the sacrifices he’s made for me.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u201cI was crying in the stands, \u2018That\u2019s my boy.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n The dad of 17-year-old \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 and New York Red Bulls midfielder, Adri Mehmeti, drove from Texas to watch him play and witness live his first goal in Miami \ud83e\udd79\u2764\ufe0fpic.twitter.com\/CMchxZLsI3<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2014 USMNT Only (@usmntonly) April 30, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Amid the bile, blood and thunder of a rivalry clash, Mehmeti\u2019s task this weekend is to remain cool and composed as he dictates the tempo for head coach Michael Bradley\u2019s new-look RBNY, flashing a passing range way beyond his years.<\/p>\n Advanced data show a caliber of distribution that compares well not only to his MLS peers, but ranks among the very best in the world, with a particular nous for the \u2018line-breaking\u2019 passes that unlock defenses. Also ahead of the curve: The scanning that informs his vision and awareness.<\/p>\n \u201cYou see the football. You see the intelligence,\u201d said Bradley, an all-time great American midfielder well-equipped to nurture Mehmeti\u2019s development. \u201cBut what you don’t know when you’re just watching on TV or watching from the outside is the personality, and the fearlessness and the love for the game. He has this infectious joy and love of training every day, of playing, of competing, and he doesn’t get fazed by anything.\u201d<\/p>\n Mehmeti is one of three teenagers Bradley elevated to his first XI, along with fellow academy products Julian Hall<\/a> and Matthew Dos Santos<\/a>, all of whom worked with Bradley to lead RBNY\u2019s second team to the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro<\/a> title.<\/p>\n That injection of youth has been fully vindicated. Hall leads the team in scoring with nine league goals, placing him in the MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi race. Meanwhile, Mehmeti and Dos Santos have generally been excellent for a Red Bulls outfit currently tied with their crosstown rivals for fifth in the Eastern Conference on 18 points from their first 13 games (5W-5L-3D).<\/p>\n Even with FIFA World Cup<\/a> and UEFA Champions League veterans like Emil Forsberg<\/a> and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting<\/a> in the squad, RBNY have handed the keys to the youngest player on the pitch, the one who\u2019s barely old enough to drive.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I go out into a derby \u2013 into any game \u2013 it’s finding the right spots, getting myself into the right spaces so I can have as much time as possible when I get the ball, to try to pick out the right pass and play forward,\u201d explained Mehmeti.<\/p>\n \u201cAnother big help with that is my teammates encouraging me to get on the ball. Emil always tells me to get on the ball as much as I can and be brave, to play forward. And if I lose a couple, if I make a couple mistakes trying some good ideas, they always say it’s no problem. Just [make] the reaction to counterpress and win it back, that’s what matters the most.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Rising Stars XI (@RisingStarXI) May 12, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\nBeyond his years<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Soccer household<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Breakthrough moment<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Play the kids<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n