New York Red Bulls head coach Mike Petke expects his side to cover the loss of star defender Roy Miller.
The 29-year old Costa Rican left-back will miss the first leg of New York's Eastern Conference final with New England Revolution in two weeks after receiving a red card late in the weekend's 2-1 semi-final loss to DC United.
Despite the defeat, the Red Bulls progressed to the Conference final with a 3-2 aggregate triumph and although they will be without Miller for the initial Revs clash, Petke believes youngster Ambroise Oyongo will be an apt replacement.
"Roy, I think is the best left back in this league, it's my opinion," Petke said.
"But we have a young guy like Oyongo who has proved to be ready and capable to play in that position. So we're okay."
Red Bulls captain Thierry Henry is also acutely aware that Miller's will provide a massive gap but is confident the team can overcome the unfortunate scenario.
"It's massive, it's massive. That's not the type of player you want to lose," said the veteran French striker. "He's been great for us, but we've had to manage this type of situation all season."
