FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (August 31, 2024) – New England Revolution II (4-15-4; 19 pts.) battled Chicago Fire FC II (8-7-8; 37 pts.) to a 1-1 draw at Gillette Stadium on Saturday night, securing two points on the night after a 4-2 shootout victory. Revolution II forward Marcos Dias tallied his seventh goal of the year.
Despite Chicago scoring an early goal in the third minute, New England grew into the game before finally pulling level in the 28th minute, when Dias rocketed a shot into the bottom corner. Dias, who has found the scoresheet twice in the last three matches, led New England’s attack with seven shots on the night. The Brazilian converted on a pass from midfielder Luka Borovic, marking the Serbian’s first helper in MLS NEXT Pro.
The two teams remained deadlocked in a back-and-forth second half, though Chicago was granted an opportunity when a red card was issued to New England defender Sage Kinner in the 80th minute. However, Chicago defender Jean Diouf was also sent off moments later after picking up a second yellow card. Revolution II was able to outshoot Chicago, 21-13, but could not find the winning goal in regulation.
Dias, Tiago Suarez, Eric Klein, and Jacob Akanyirige converted on their penalties while goalkeeper JD Gunn made two saves to secure Revolution II a 4-2 shootout victory. Akanyirige, a 21-year-old defender, made his season debut as a late second half substitute, in his return from a quad injury he sustained in 2023.
Tonight’s match also saw the return of midfielder and Somerville, Mass. native Cristiano Oliveira, who had been out since suffering an injury on May 4. Oliveira was one of five amateur Revolution Academy players to appear in tonight’s contest, including Kinner, Klein, Damario McIntosh, and Grant Emerhi.
Revolution II is back at home next Sunday, September 8 to host Toronto FC II at Gillette Stadium. The 7:00 p.m. ET kickoff is available to watch on MLSNEXTPro.com.
MATCH NOTES
- F Marcos Dias, Revolution II’s all-time leading goal scorer, tallied his seventh goal of the 2024 MLS NEXT Pro campaign, one behind Alex Monis (8) for the team lead.
- M Luka Borovic recorded his first assist of the season in his 10th start with New England.
- M Cristiano Oliveira, an Academy player, logged 32 minutes in his first appearance since suffering an injury in May.
- D Jacob Akanyirige made his first appearance since September 2023, returning from a quad injury.
- GK JD Gunn posted two saves in the penalty shootout to help give New England the additional point in Saturday’s contest.
GAME CAPSULE
MLS NEXT Pro Match #23
New England Revolution II 1 (4), Chicago Fire FC II 1 (2)
August 31, 2024 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
Referee: Emma Richards
Assistant Referee: Josh Lampkins
Assistant Referee: Carlos Morales-Lastra
Fourth Official: David Elliott
Weather: 76 degrees and mostly cloudy
Scoring Summary:
CHI – Omari Glasgow (Javier Casas) 3’
NE- Marcos Dias 7 (Luka Borovic 1) 28’
Misconduct Summary:
CHI – Charles Nagle (Yellow Card) 26’
CHI – Omari Glasgow (Yellow Card) 41’
NE – Sage Kinner (Red Card) 80’
CHI – Jean Diouf (Yellow Card) 85’
CHI – Jean Diouf (Second Yellow Card, Red Card) 90’+2
New England Revolution II: JD Gunn; Malcolm Fry (Jacob Akanyirige 90’+12), Tiago Suarez, Sage Kinner, Colby Quiñones (Cristiano Oliveira 58’); Eric Klein, Maciel (Damario McIntosh 46’), Luka Borovic; Gevork Diarbian (Andrej Bjelajac 90’+1), Joshua Bolma (Grant Emerhi 90’+1), Marcos Dias.
Substitutes Not Used: Max Weinstein, Brandonn Bueno, Moshtaba Al-Hasnawi.
Chicago Fire FC II: Patrick Los; Lamonth Rochester, Jean Diouf, Jaylen Shannon, Bryce Richards (Christian Koffi 46’); Sergio Oregel (Peter Soudan 80’), Harold Osorio (Jason Shokalook 60’), Charles Nagle, Javier Casas; David Poreba, Omari Glasgow.
Substitutes Not Used: Romain Blake, David Poreba, Patryk Stechnjj, Giovanni Granda, Josue Pfrommer, Juan Miguel Zapata-Calle, Charlie Norkett.
