FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (September 8, 2024) – New England Revolution II (4-15-4; 19 pts.) battled Toronto FC II (8-10-4; 28 pts.) to a 2-2 draw at Gillette Stadium on Sunday night, securing an additional point with the 6-5 penalty shootout victory. Revolution II forward Marcos Dias netted both goals to lift his total to a team-leading nine goals in 2024.
The visitors took an early lead when Toronto captain Julian Altobelli converted a penalty kick in the eighth minute. Late in the first half, New England equalized as Dias tapped the ball behind Toronto’s goalkeeper in the 41st minute. The Brazilian forward capitalized on an assist from midfielder Gevork Diarbian, who’s header deflected right to the foot of Dias. Diarbian, a Cranston, R.I. native, recorded his fourth assist of the 2024 MLS NEXT Pro campaign.
New England started the second half on the front foot, with Dias completing his brace in the 48th minute. The Brazilian’s second tally marks his fourth goal across the last four matches. Dias converted on a helper from midfielder Maciel, his second assist of the 2024 campaign. Late in the second half, Toronto leveled the match to send both teams into a penalty shootout. New England has now collected back-to-back shootout victories.
Dias, Joshua Bolma, Tiago Suarez, Victor Souza, Liam Butts, and Javaun Mussenden all converted on their penalties while goalkeeper Max Weinstein, an Academy product, made two saves to secure Revolution II’s additional point. Souza, a 23-year-old defender, logged 29 minutes in his first appearance since returning from injury.
Midfielder and Somerville, Mass. native Cristiano Oliveira, also returning from injury, featured in the starting lineup. Oliveira was one of five current Revolution Academy players to feature in Sunday’s contest, including Mussenden, Eric Klein, Damario McIntosh, and Grant Emerhi.
Revolution II hit the road next Sunday, September 15 taking on Orlando City B at Osceola Heritage Park. The 5:00 p.m. ET kickoff is available to watch on MLSNEXTPro.com.
MATCH NOTES
- F Marcos Dias tallied a brace in tonight’s contest. Dias now leads Revolution II this season with nine goals on the year.
- M Gevork Diarbian, a Cranston, R.I. native, recorded his fourth assist of the season. Diarbian has featured in every match for Revolution II this year (24).
- M Maciel registered his second assist of the 2024 MLS NEXT Pro campaign.
- M Cristiano Oliveira, an Academy product, logged 61 minutes in his first start since suffering an injury in May.
- D Victor Souza logged 29 minutes in his first appearance since returning from an injury he sustained on June 1.
- GK Max Weinstein, a Montpelier, Vermont native, posted six saves in regulation and two saves in the penalty shootout to help give New England the additional point in Sunday’s contest.
GAME CAPSULE
MLS NEXT Pro Match #24
New England Revolution II 2 (6), Toronto FC II 2 (5)September 8, 2024 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
Referee: Johnathan Luk
Assistant Referee: Eric Del Rosario
Assistant Referee: Justen Lopez
Fourth Official: Laszlo Sandler
Weather: 64 degrees and sunny
Scoring Summary:TOR – Julian Altobelli (Penalty Kick) 8’
NE – Marcos Dias 8 (Gevork Diarbian 4) 41’
NE – Marcos Dias 9 (Maciel 2) 48’
TOR – Charlie Staniland (Charlie Sharp) 78’
Misconduct Summary:TOR – Charlie Staniland (Yellow Card) 68’
TOR – Nate Edwards (Yellow Card) 75’
TOR – Adam Pearlman (Yellow Card) 90’+2
New England Revolution II: Max Weinstein; Malcolm Fry (Moshtaba Al-Hasnawi 46’), Tiago Suarez, Eric Klein, Damario McIntosh (Victor Souza 61’); Eric Klein, Maciel (Grant Emerhi 61’), Javaun Mussenden; Gevork Diarbian (Liam Butts 74’), Cristiano Oliveira (Luka Borovic 61’), Joshua Bolma; Marcos Dias.
Substitutes Not Used: JD Gunn, Brandonn Bueno, Jacob Akanyirige, Andrej Bjelajac.
Toronto FC II: Adisa De Rosario, Adam Pearlman, Ythallo (Andrei Dumitru 79’), Marko Stojadinovic; Lucas Olguin (Matthew Catavolo 90’+1), Nate Edwards, Alonso Coello (Charlie Staniland 46’), Theo Rigopoulos (Hassan Ayari 71’); Charlie Sharp, Mark Fisher, Julian Altobelli.
Substitutes Not Used: Abraham Rodriguez, Kundai Mawoko, Richard Chukwu,, Tyler Londoni, Stefan Kapor.
