Jaap Stam hopes FC Cincinnati and struggling star striker Jurgen Locadia can turn their form around at the New York Red Bulls.
Cincinnati have not tasted victory in MLS since the MLS is Back Tournament and have scored only once in that time in last week's defeat to New York City.
Locadia's troubles have contributed to their problems, with the on-loan forward scoring only twice this season, despite hitting the ground running with a debut goal against the Red Bulls.
"In football, in soccer, it's very close," Stam said. "You can have a very difficult time and then you score, or you win, and the whole world looks different."
On Locadia, he added: "I know the personality that he is, that I was as well.
"As a player, feeling that little bit of pressure, you start thinking about things more and more, and you don't need to do that," Stam said. "I spoke with him. Jurgen is a great guy to work with. He's got great ability as well. He's still quite young. Everybody knows what he can do and what he can give us."
Interim Red Bulls head coach Bradley Carnell bounced back from a big defeat to Philadelphia Union in his first match with a breakthrough win against DC United last week.
He said: "I'm not very emotional. It's part of my nature, part of my character. I like to keep on getting on with the next thing. I don't really celebrate too much, whether it's birthdays, whether it's three points... It's just three points in the bag and we're moving on.
"That's just the way I'm going to approach these coming games."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
New York Red Bulls - Kaku
Playmaker Kaku scored five goals and provided five assists for the Red Bulls last season. They now need the Paraguayan to step up again. He created Aaron Long's opener against FC Dallas last time out and could be integral in creating opportunities this weekend.
FC Cincinnati - Brandon Vazquez
With Locadia failing to deliver, it felt to Vazquez to end Cincinnati's 558-minute scoreless run against New York City last Saturday. Both of his goal contributions this season have come at Red Bull Arena.
KEY OPTA FACTS
-- Cincinnati beat the Red Bulls 2-0 in the group stage of the MLS is Back Tournament, their first points against New York in four meetings. The Red Bulls won the first three games between the teams in MLS, including a 3-2 home victory in the opening week of the season.
-- The Red Bulls are looking for a second straight win after beating DC United 2-0 on Saturday. They have achieved consecutive successes just once since the beginning of June.
-- The visitors have collected just three points in six matches since returning from the MLS is Back Tournament, with all three points coming in scoreless draws.
-- Daniel Royer's goal for the Red Bulls against DC United on Saturday ended an eight-match scoring drought in regular season play, the longest of his MLS career.
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