FRISCO, Texas – The New England Revolution (0-2-0; 0 pts.) fell to FC Dallas (2-0-1; 7 pts.) in the Revolution’s second match of the 2017 season. Midfielder Lee Nguyen registered the first goal of the match, converting a penalty kick after Antonio Delamea was brought down in the box in the 9th minute. Maximiliano Urruti of FC Dallas tallied twice in a span of six minutes in the second half to give Dallas the lead and eventual victory.
Saturday’s match featured the MLS debut of midfielder Xavier Kouassi, who signed a pre-contract with the Revolution as a designated player in February of 2016 and joined the club four months later. Kouassi is the third Ivorian to play for the Revolution, joining Arsène Oka and Benjamin Angoua.
Lee Nguyen registered his 41st career goal in tonight’s contest. With the goal, Nguyen is tied with Joe-Max Moore for third-most career goals with the Revolution.
New England returns to Foxborough for its 2017 home opener against Minnesota United FC on Saturday, March 18. The match kicks off at 2:00 p.m. ET and will be broadcast locally on CSN New England with Brad Feldman, Paul Mariner, and Naoko Funayama on the call. Fans can also listen on the radio in English on 98.5 The Sports Hub and on 1570 WMVX Nossa Radio in Portuguese.
New England Revolution 1, FC Dallas 2
March 18, 2017 – Toyota Stadium (Frisco, Texas)
Revolution Fall to FC Dallas in Second Match of 2017 Regular Season
- The Revolution fell to FC Dallas, 2-1, bringing the club’s record to 0-2-0 (0 pts.) through two matches of the 2017 regular season.
- New England’s record against FC Dallas falls to 23-17-3, while its record on the road against Dallas drops to 11-10-2.
Nguyen Moves Up in Revs Record Books; Converts Penalty for First Revs Goal of 2017
- Midfielder Lee Nguyen recorded the first goal of 2017 for the New England Revolution when he converted from the penalty spot in the 10th minute of tonight’s contest.
- The goal gave Nguyen 41 career goals, all of which have come with the Revolution, tying him with Joe-Max Moore for the third-most goals scored in club history. With his next goal, Nguyen will move into a tie for the second-most goals in club history with Steve Ralston.
- The Revolution midfielder now has 14 career penalty kick goals, most by a single player in club history.
Kouassi makes Revolution Debut in Starting Role
- Revolution midfielder Xavier Kouassi joined teammates Benjamin Angoua and Antonio Mlinar Delamea in becoming the third player to make his Revolution and MLS debut this season with a start in tonight’s contest. Kouassi played 79 minutes before being replaced by Femi-Hollinger Janzen.
- Kouassi is the third Ivorian to play for the Revolution, joining Arsène Oka (2006-07) and Benjamin Angoua (2017).
Lee Nguyen Moves to Seventh in Most Minutes Played in Club History
- Revolution midfielder Lee Nguyen now ranks seventh all-time in MLS minutes played for the New England Revolution. Needing just 48 minutes to pass Joe Franchino’s career mark (13,684), Nguyen played the full 90 minutes.
- Next on the list is Taylor Twellman (15,046), who Nguyen is on pace to surpass later this season.
Revolution Make One Change to Starting XI
- Revolution Head Coach Jay Heaps made one change to the starting lineup from New England’s most recent match on March 4 against the Colorado Rapids. Midfielder Xavier Kouassi replaced midfielder Kelyn Rowe.
- In addition, two changes were made to the matchday 18-man roster. Goalkeeper Matt Turner and forward Femi Hollinger-Janzen replaced goalkeeper Brad Knighton and defender Je-Vaughn Watson.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS
- 10th minute (GOAL) – Lee Nguyen converts from the penalty spot to give the Revolution the lead (WATCH).
- 13th minute (CHANCE) – Kei Kamara nutmegs Walker Zimmerman to create some space and fires a shot on net from inside the 18-yard box, but Chris Seitz is able to make the save (WATCH).
- 68th minute (CHANCE) – Kei Kamara fires on net from the top of the 18-yard box, however the shot is stopped by Chris Seitz (WATCH).
- 71st minute (GOAL) – Maximiliano Urruti scores on a rebound opportunity after Cody Cropper stops the initial shot from Michael Barrios (WATCH).
- 77th minute GOAL) – Following a long distance pass from Hernán Grana, Maximiliano Urruti rockets a shot past Cody Cropper at the near post (WATCH).
GAME CAPSULE
Referee: Alan Kelly
Assistant Referees: Kyle Atkins (AR1), Anthony Vasoli (AR2)
Fourth Official: Younes Marrakchi
Weather: 77 Degrees and Sunny
Attendance: 16,150
Scoring Summary:
NE – Lee Nguyen 1 (Penalty Kick) 10’
DAL – Maximiliano Urruti 2 (Unassisted) 71’
DAL – Maximiliano Urruti 3 (Unassisted) 77’
Misconduct Summary:
DAL – Roland Lamah (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 37’
DAL – Maynor Figueroa (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 54’
NE – Juan Agudelo (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 73’
New England Revolution: Cody Cropper; Chris Tierney (Teal Bunbury 84’), Benjamin Angoua, Antonio Delamea, Andrew Farrell; Xavier Kouassi (Femi Hollinger-Janzen 79’); Diego Fagundez, Scott Caldwell, Juan Agudelo (Kelyn Rowe 76’); Kei Kamara, Lee Nguyen ©
Substitutes Not Used: Matt Turner, Josh Smith, London Woodberry, Daigo Kobayashi
FC Dallas: Chris Seitz; Maynor Figueroa, Matt Hedges, Walker Zimmerman, Hernán Grana; Roland Lamah (Atiba Harris 81’), Kellyn Acosta, Carlos Gruezo, Paxton Pomykal (Tesho Akindele 60); Maximiliano Urruti, Cristian Colmán (Michael Barrios 45’ – HT)
Substitutes Not Used: Jesse Gonzalez, Aaron Guillen, Carlos Cermeño, Coy Craft
