New York City FC fell to New England Revolution 2-0 at Gillette Stadium on Saturday night, added to the team’s road woes as they remain winless away from the five boroughs. Revolution’s big strikers Ignatius Ganago and Leo Campana provided all the firepower needed while City showed little fight in a frustrating performance.
New England moved the ball well in the first half as City appeared more comfortable waiting for their moments on the counter attack. Conspicuous by his absence in the starting line-up was Keaton Parks. Instead head coach Pascal Jansen went with Hannes Wolf in the midfield to squeeze struggling striker Mounsef Bakrar into a starting position. Little came of build-up play between Bakrar and fellow striker Alonso Martinez. The Costa Rican goalscorer also had trouble finding attempts with only a right-footed volley in the 16th minute as his main contribution.
The game-winning goal came in the 43rd minute when Ganago pivoted in the box to find Campana. His shot deflected off of a City defender and past goalkeeper Matt Freese for the game’s opening salvo. Just minutes after the restart in the second half, Ganago himself found the back of the net, burying a cross into the box from Carles Gil. The two goals represented New England’s first from open play all season.
Jansen did make changes by bringing on Andres Perea, Julian Fernandez and Tayvon Gray in an attempt to sway the momentum of the game. However, New England held firm and were able to get their third consecutive clean sheet and fourth win in a row. City on the other hand, find themselves with just one win in their last five games.
Next up will be a trip to Toronto where they will play a team that is equally looking for signs of life in the 2025 campaign. While they may have garnered their first win over the weekend against Real Salt Lake, Toronto is a club that appears to be ripe for the picking in order for City to regain their momentum.
STARTING XI:
New York City FC: Freese; Ilenic (62′ Gray), Haak, Martins, O’Toole (75′ Cavallo), Wolf, Shore (62′ Perea), Moralez, Bakrar (62′ Fernandez), Martinez, Ojeda (46′ Parks)
New England Revolution: Ivacic; Beason, Ceballos, Fofana (83′ Bye), Feingold, Yusuf, Gil, Polster, Miller (78′ Sands), Ganago (83′ Langoni), Campana (67′ Chankalay)
SCORING SUMMARY:
43′ (New England Revolution) Leonardo Campana (1) assisted by Ignatius Ganago
48′ (New England Revolution) Ignatius Ganago (2) assisted by Carles Gil
DISCIPLINE:
54′ (New England Revolution) Matt Polster – YELLOW CARD
90′ (New York City FC) Tayvon Gray – YELLOW CARD
photo by Jordan Bank