Red Bulls settle for rotten draw with New England

HARRISON, N.J. – The New York Red Bulls had plenty of chances and attacked all night long, but sadly weren’t able to cash in on a victory and settled for a deflating 1-1 draw with the New England Revolution on Saturday night.

The opening 45 minutes were a breath of fresh air (unlike Red Bull Arena), as the Red Bulls played solid defense and attacked both down the flanks and the middle of the park. In the 18th minute, they were able to break through and find the back of the net.

Daniel Royer took advantage of a mishap by the Revolution’s defense and got the ball towards the end line. He saw Brian White making a run towards the net and crossed it, but Matt Turner made the stop and his defender cleared the ball.

But, standing in the right spot, Marc Rzatkowski stopped the clearance at the top of the area and took a shot that bent towards the near post and splashed into the back of the net. It was the breakthrough the home side needed and they continued to attack the Revs all match long.

But when the second half began, the Revs became a different side. They defended smarter, countered and found a way to get on the scoresheet. It was a tally from their new signing, Gustavo Bou, that earned the road point.

The goal came in the 65th minute, when Juan Agudelo found Carles Gil, who then threaded a pass to Bou who broke through the defense along the far side. When he got inside the area, Luis Robles tried to stop him, but Bou slotted his shot into the back of the net.

There was still plenty of time for the Red Bulls to make a second goal happen, but, sadly, Revolution goalkeeper Matt Turner made save after save to keep the point for the Revolution.

“If we could play 34 games and take 22 shots and give up six, I think it’s going to be a good year,” Chris Armas said. “I’m not sure that their game plan was to sit back tonight. I thought in the first half we had a good grasp of the game. We could’ve scored a few goals.

“There are a lot of positives to take from tonight, and ww’ll also look hard as we do to gain a better understand of what it’s going to take.”

White it was sad to see Brian White forced out of the match in the 29th minute (with an ankle injury), his exit meant the first extended minutes for Bradley Wright-Phillips since his groin injury that sidelined him two months. And BWP showed his guile and savvy.

He put himself into positions where he normally would score, but was thwarted by Turner every time he touched the ball on frame.

The Red Bulls have a busy week and will have to get ready for two matches on the road within a span of six days (DC on Wednesday and NYCFC on Saturday). They need points and wins badly to catch up to the top sides in the Eastern Conference.

A possibility of 24 points is up for grabs the rest of the season, and the Red Bulls need to capitalize on all opportunities if they want to set themselves up right for the playoffs.