He also got his first taste of the Open Cup in Cincinnati – on the wrong side of a 5-1 hammering in Massachusetts by Carles Gil and the New England Revolution in 2022.
Settled in Albuquerque Home
Now he’s standing out in the crowd for New Mexico United, currently third in the USL Championship’s Western Conference after three wins from four games. In the Official Draw for the Third Round of our Open Cup – live on the CBS Sports Golazo Network – commentator and former Open Cup hero, Jamie Watson, singled Bailey out as a player to watch: “He’s pulling all the strings for New Mexico United in the middle of the park,” he said during the broadcast.
When Bailey and the New Mexicans enter the competition in this year’s Third Round – with 15 other top-ranked USL Championship sides – he’ll be hoping to match last year’s heroics. NMU pulled off one of the biggest Cupsets in the 2024 tournament with a 4-2 win over Real Salt Lake, MLS’ western conference powers, in the Round of 32.
The stylish Bailey provided the first goal in the upset of RSL in the 17th minute. It was also his first goal for his new club. He added another two minutes later in a man-of-the-match performance. The crowd, fans he calls “among the best in American soccer” were on their feet. They were seeing first-hand the kind of style and excitement that caused club sporting director Itamar Keinan to sign Zico up at the start of that 2024 season from San Antonio FC for his “obvious talent, skill, speed, and dedication.”
It’s those same qualities that led Philippines National Team coach Tom Saintfiet to tap Bailey for the first of his 11 caps (so far) last year in World Cup Qualifying (Zico is eligible via his Filipina mother).
Bailey outshone RSL’s star man – and recent USMNT standout – Diego Luna on that Round-of-32 night in last year’s Open Cup. “It was a really big night for the club,” Bailey said of the win, which led to a second Quarterfinal run in NMU history and was only halted by eventual Champions LAFC.
“We all get that value of the Open Cup,” said Bailey, pointing to the opportunities the competition offers for clubs and individual players in the Division II USL Championship.
“This is a chance to win a trophy and we take that responsibility very seriously,” said Bailey, leading the way in a deep-lying role for a club with a special relationship to this country’s most historic tournament.
Bailey has taken to his Albuquerque-based club fast – settling into a leadership role in only his second season. And those fans who call Isotopes Park home, many of whom remember vividly the club’s debut-year Quarterfinal run in the Open Cup in 2019, have taken him to their hearts.
“Cup games can be tricky,” said Bailey, ahead of a Third Round entry on April 16 at home against fellow USL Championship mates El Paso Locomotive (LIVE on Paramount+ & the CBS Sports Golazo Network).
“You always have to respect your opponent,” he said, knowing all Cup games have an element of the unpredictable to them. “If you don’t, you can get surprised.”
Fontela is editor-in-chief of usopencup.com. Follow him at @jonahfontela on X/Twitter.
