FOXBOROUGH, MA – Two of the league’s “Original Ten” clashed for the second time this season and the 85th time overall at Gillette Stadium as the Red Bulls looked to complete the season series sweep with many of their starting eleven currently away on International Duty, leaving their understudies with a chance to impress Head Coach Sandro Schwarz against a Revolution side that has only three victories thus far this season.
New England Head Coach Caleb Porter hoped to build on their 2-1 road victory over Nashville SC. The Revs had won just one of their previous seven matches before heading to GEODIS Park, but now they will face the Red Bulls with six squad members on the injury reserve list and three away on International duty. They reside at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, looking to bring some respectability to a season mired in abject disappointment.
Five minutes in, the Red Bulls were the first team with a scoring chance. Dennis Gjengarr managed to dribble the ball deep into the New England defense, but Wikelman Carmona’s shot sailed high and over the bar, much to his coach’s dismay. Dante Vanzeir had his opportunity denied two minutes later when New England goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic easily saved his soft shot.
New England responded in the 11th minute as Ian Harkes took a pass from Carles Gil, but his shot went wide to the right.
In the 31st minute, Elias Manoel almost allowed the opposing team to score when he carelessly lost possession to Carles Gil and rushed toward the goal. Giacomo Vironi received a pass from a through ball and took a powerful shot, but Ryan Meara made a great save with his strong right hand.
As the first half came to a close, the Red Bulls’ inconsistent play in the final third was not up to par, even with some of your best players away on international break. Going into the second half, the question is whether they will solve that issue en route to another road win.
The second half began with some promise by the Red Bulls, with Daniel Edelman taking a pass and earning a penalty after getting fouled in the box by Aljaz Ivacic. However, after further review, the foul was disallowed, and play quickly resumed.
As Daniel Edelman and Elias Manoel combined, the Red Bulls continued to create scoring chances. Manoel skipped a right-footed shot, but again, Ivacic saved this one just as easily.
Both teams spent the last ten minutes trading turnovers and wide shots, with neither team breaking through with a clear chance to the net. But in the 81st minute, the Revolution finally broke through, thanks partly to a defensive breakdown from Cameron Harper. Carles Gil took full advantage, finding Boateng, who then pushed it into the net for the one-goal lead.
The Red Bulls pushing hard for an equalizer that would never come, and by the time the final whistle was blown, the 1-0 loss cemented yet another frustrating evening for the visitors, who must now rely on the comforts of home get three points.
Scoring Summary:
81′ – New England Revolution – Emmanuel Boateng, assisted by Carles Gil
Disciplinary Summary:
44′ – New York Red Bulls – Sean Nealis – Yellow Card
64′ – New England Revolution – Matthew Polster – Yellow Card
Starting Lineups:
New England Revolution: Aljaz Ivacic, Dave Romney, Xavier Arreaga, Nick Lima, DeJuan Jones, Matthew Polster, Carles Gil, Ian Harkes (Emmanuel Boateng 69′), Mark-Anthony Kaye (Andrew Farrell 90+5′), Giacomo Vrioni, Dylan Borrero (Jonathan Mensah 85′)
New York Red Bulls: Ryan Meara, Kyle Duncan, Dylan Nealis, Sean Nealis, Frankie Amaya, Cameron Harper, Wikelman Carmona, Daniel Edelman (Omar Valencia 89′), Dennis Gjengaar (Mohammed Sofo 63′), Elias Manoel (Julian Hall 74′), Dante Vanzeir (Cory Burke 74′)
Final Thoughts:
This might sting for a bit. This team spent the entire evening trying to get a point on the road at a historically very hard venue. With the exception of a defensive mistake, the understudies did not make the most of the opportunities presented to them and headed back to Harrison in a frustrating fashion, lamenting those mistakes near the end of the match.