Revolution Unable to Top Red Bulls, Drop Second Straight
Sunday, June 08, 2014
The Revs got their offense started early as in just the 1st minute of the game Lee Nguyen made a good run up the sideline and crossed a ball for Patrick Mullins who ripped the games first shot. The shot was turned away by Red Bulls goalkeeper Luis Robles, but was a early reminder on how quickly the Revs attack can work.
While the Revs attack was controlling the game early, the Red Bull were first to get on the board. The goal came in the 18th minute off a nice delivery on a free kick by Lloyd Sam which was headed in by Eric Alexander making it 1-0. It appeared that Revolution goalkeeper was trying to make a play on the free kick when Alexander snuck the header behind him into an open net.
The Revs offense continued to control the pace despite trailing. In the 22nd minute, Lee Nguyen made a good run up the middle of the field and forced Luis Robles to make another save. Then just over a minute later Chris Tierney crossed a dangerous ball across the face of the net, but just out of the reach of Teal Bunbury.
The attack continued just moments later as Chris Tierney ripped a shot from outside the box which was deflected over the net by Robles.
The Revs were on the attack again in the 30th minute when Teal Bunbury took a near-angle shot that was denied by Robles. The shot came off a good run by Diego Fagundez who fed Lee Nguyen before getting the ball over to Bunbury.
The Red Bull tested Bobby Shuttleworth again in the 40th minute as Chris Duvall gained possession in the attacking half of the field and ripped a shot wide to the near side, forcing Shuttleworth to react.
The Revs attack was at it again in the 44th minute as this time it was Diego Fagundez trying to even the score. Fagundez was given a good ball from Patrick Mullins and turned the corner, letting off a shot over the head of Robles but off the far post. Although the Revs controlled the pace of play in the first half, they went to the locker room with a 1-0 deficit at halftime.
Following halftime, the Revolution made a substitution that surprised many at Gillette Stadium as Kelyn Rowe entered the game for Forward Patrick Mullins. Speculation was that Mullins may have been injured, but in his post game interview Revolution head coach Jay Heaps said the change was tactical.
The Revs offense came out in the second half much like it did in the first. In the 50th minute Andrew Farrell made a great run but was turned away by Robles. Robles turned away yet another shot just moments later from Lee Nguyen.
Just two minutes later the Revs attack challenged Robles again. This time it was Diego Fagundez who put a strong shot low on Robles.
The Revs spent much of the rest of the half trying to figure out Robles, who made save after save but it was again the Red Bull that found the net. This time it was an unassisted goal off the foot of Peguy Luyindula which put New York up 2-0 in the 77th minute.
The Revs pushed forward and threatened again in the 90th minute as Diego Fagundez put a ball across the face of the net with both Bunbury and Nguyen in the area but neither could put a touch on the ball and the Revs were again unable to score. "It just wasn't our night," Fagundez said following the game. "we fought, we tried to do everything we could. A couple of balls hit the post, a couple good chances in the six and we just couldn't finish."
That was the final opportunity the Revs would get as the Red Bull pulled off the 2-0 win despite playing the game with a severely depleted roster. With the loss the Revs go into the World Cup break with back-to-back losses following a seven-game unbeaten run. "[It was a] Disappointing result and we weren't thrilled with how it went down tonight," Heaps said following the loss. "Its a tough result at home."
In the end the Revs outshot the Red Bulls 22 to eight with a nine to two advantage on shots on target. While generating all of these chances, the Revs were shut down by New York keeper Luis Robles. On the night, Robles recorded nine saves while Revolution goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth did not record one. "I think we had a great game," Revolution forward Teal Bunbury said when asked about the Revs' chances. "Unfortunately we lost."
In the end, Jay Heaps summed up the performance of his team as, "We wanted to go out and finish our chances better tonight," Heaps said. "Look, we could have scored in the first 30-seconds of that game. We could have scored at various times in the game. I just thought we we let ourselves down."
Follow us on Pinterest Google + Facebook Twitter See It Read It