FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – New England Revolution II (2-0-0, 6 pts.) earned a 2-1 victory against New York City FC II (0-0-0, 0 pts.) on Sunday night at Gillette Stadium. Jordan Adebayo-Smith tallied his first goal of the season while Homegrown midfielder Esmir Bajraktarević scored the game-winner in the 89th minute to secure Revolution II’s second straight win to open the 2023 season.
“I just feel it builds confidence. We’re a young group as well, so just winning a lot. Just having that winning mentality is a good feeling, and it just helps us bond more," Adebayo-Smith said of his team's strong start. "And if we're winning together, we play well. It just gives us the confidence that we know we can beat anyone in the league.”
New England found the scoresheet in the 24th minute as Marcos Dias crossed the ball in to Adebayo-Smith, who scored with a right-footed shot into the center of the goal for his first tally of the season. New York City tied things up to close out the first half as John Denis scored on a free kick in the 43rd minute.
The score stayed even throughout the second half as both sides exchanged chances until the 89th minute, when Malcolm Fry sent the ball forward to Bajraktarević who slotted the ball home with a left-footed shot to seal the late game-winner for New England.
“I think it was a gutsy performance, and the fact that New York’s a good team, I think they put us under a lot of pressure," Head Coach Clint Peay said. "And the guys were resilient, which is good to see, kind of bent, but didn't break completely. And we were able to be opportunistic in the counter, and I thought we had a good response to the first half and had a better second half.”
New England returns to action on Monday, April 10 to host Philadelphia Union II at Gillette Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. with the match streaming live on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
New England Revolution II 2, NYCFC II 1
April 2, 2023 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
- Forward Jordan Adebayo-Smith tallied his first goal of the season with forward Marcos Dias earning his first assist of the season on the play.
- Homegrown midfielder Esmir Bajraktarević notched the 89th minute game-winner after entering the match in the 50th minute.
- Forward Malcolm Fry picked up his first assist of the season on Bajraktarevic’s tally.
- Midfielder Jake Rozhansky logged 87 minutes in his 45th start with Revolution II.
- Goalkeeper Nico Campuzano made five saves enroute to his second career victory. 15-year-old Academy defender Peyton Miller played the full 90 for his second consecutive match with New England’s second team.
GAME CAPSULE
Referee: Sergii Boiko
Assistant Referees: Jessica Carnevale, Patrick Casey
Fourth Official: Christian Centeno
Weather: 39 and cloudy
Scoring Summary:
NE – Jordan Adebayo-Smith (Marcos Dias) 24’
NYC – John Denis 43’
NE – Esmir Bajraktarević (Malcolm Fry) 89’
Misconduct Summary:
NYC – Nicholas Benalcazar 40’
NYC – Piero Elias 45’
NE – Jake Rozhansky 45’
NE – Peyton Miller 79’
NE – Damian Rivera 84’
New England Revolution II: Nico Campuzano; Peyton Miller, Pierre Cayet, Tiago Suarez, Victor Souza; Noble Okello (Esmir Bajraktarević 50’), Jake Rozhansky (Ben Awashie 87’), Joshua Bolma; Damian Rivera, Jordan Adebayo-Smith (Weverton 71’), Marcos Dias (Malcolm Fry 71’).
Substitutes Not Used: Max Weinstein, Colby Quinones, Jacob Akanyirige, Nakye Greenidge-Duncan.
New York City FC II: Alex Rando; Stevo Bednarsky (Ronald Arevalo 92’), Samuel Owusu, Klevis Haxhari, Rio Hope-Gund; Piero Elias (Franceso Di Ponzio 78’), Nicholas Benalcazar, Jack Beer; John Denis, Matthew Meyrs, Jonathan Jimenez.
Substitutes Not Used: Kofi Hope-Gund, Oliver Stafford, Massimo Murania Yankowitz, Mateo Ponce-Ocampo, Brian Flores, Tyler Morck.
