New York City FC (NYCFC) star Nicolás Fernández Mercau insists that his focus is fully on the club after deciding to remain with NYCFC despite reported offers for his services during the summer transfer window.
Fernández Mercau, who joined NYCFC as a designated player midway through the 2025 MLS season, had been widely linked to a move away from the Big Apple over the summer transfer window, with Sporting Kansas City rumored to have made a bid worth $25 million, according to multiple reports.
But Fernández Mercau, who currently sits third in the MLS goalscoring standings on 15 goals, remained with NYCFC beyond the end of the transfer window and is now looking ahead to a late-season play-off charge after a difficult run of results.
Speaking ahead of Friday night’s Hudson River Derby against Red Bull New York at Yankee Stadium, the Argentine appeared to confirm that an offer had been made for his services over the summer but said he chose to remain in the Big Apple.
Fernández Mercau did not reveal which clubs had bid for him during the summer transfer window, but the New York Post reported that NYCFC had accepted the offer from Sporting Kansas City. The 26-year-old, speaking to amNewYork via a translator, said he “made the decision” to stay at the club beyond the end of the window.
“That’s just soccer. There’s always going to be rumors and offers, but I’m very happy and content to be here in the city,” he said. “I made a decision to stay here. I’m content and happy with my teammates, the staff, everybody at the club. So my focus is fully on New York City.”
Fernández Mercau was on the scoresheet in NYCFC’s 2-0 win at Real Salt Lake last weekend as the club snapped a seven-game winless streak in the MLS ahead of Friday night’s derby, which he feels has come at just the right time.
“It was a massive win for us, especially given the current form that we were in,” he said. “I think it changes the mentality of the team going into the derby on Friday.”
A win in Friday’s derby would also afford the club a chance to spring into the business end of the season and boost their play-off hopes, Fernández Mercau said.
“It’s very important to get a win (on Friday),” Fernández Mercau said. “Going into the rest of the season, the objective is to get as many points and finish in the best position we can. We want to go into the playoffs and make another finals run like we did last season.”
The Red Bulls come into Friday’s derby off the back of a similarly difficult run of form, with Saturday’s 1-0 win in Columbus snapping a six-game winless run in the league. Michael Bradley’s side currently sit 10th in the Eastern Conference, two points behind Pascal Jansen’s NYCFC in eighth.
A win on Friday would therefore catapult the Red Bulls above NYCFC into the wild card places, likely leaving NYCFC just outside the post-season places with only eight games remaining.
With so much on the line, Fernández Mercau is taking nothing for granted, despite the Red Bulls’ poor run of form and NYCFC’s recent dominance in the derby, with the Boys in Blue winning four and drawing two of the last six regular-season fixtures between the clubs.
“At the end of the day, it’s still a derby. It’s defined by the small details, so hopefully, those details go our way this time around.”
