FRISCO, Texas – The New England Revolution (0-0-1, 1 pt.) opened the 2019 Major League Soccer season with a 1-1 draw against FC Dallas at Toyota Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Midfielder Carles Gil, a Designated Player acquired by New England via transfer from Spanish side Deportivo de La Coruña in January, scored the equalizing goal in the 57th minute of his MLS debut. Dallas' Michael Barrios scored the home side's lone goal in the 13th minute.
In addition to his goal, Gil recorded three shots, including two on target, and a pair of chances created over a 90-minute shift. The Spaniard's goal was assisted by both of the Revolution's starting center backs, Jalil Anibaba and Antonio Delamea. Anibaba was a late addition to the starting lineup after Michael Mancienne suffered an injury in warmups.
Defender Edgar Castillo also made his debut for the Revolution this afternoon. He played 90 minutes and paced the team with 67 touches. In net, goalkeeper Brad Knighton got the start for the Revolution and registered two saves.
New England will open its 2019 home slate at Gillette Stadium on Saturday, March 9 against Columbus Crew SC. The match kicks off at 2:00 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Boston, 98.5 The Sports Hub, and in Portuguese on 1260 AM Nossa Radio.
New England Revolution 1, FC Dallas 1
March 2, 2019 – Toyota Stadium (Frisco, Texas)
Revs Open 2019 Season with 1-1 Draw at FC Dallas
·The Revolution drew FC Dallas, 1-1, on Saturday, setting the club’s record at 0-0-1 (1 pt.) to open the 2019 MLS season.
- New England's all-time record against the Hoops moves to 23-18-4, including an 11-10-3 mark in matches played in Dallas.
- The Revs snapped a seven-game losing streak to FC Dallas with today's result.
Carles Gil Opens Account in Revolution and MLS Debut
·Forward Carles Gil scored New England's lone goal in his Revolution and MLS debut.
·The Revs acquired Gil via transfer from Spanish side Deportivo de La Coruña and signed him to a multi-year Designated Player contract on Jan. 30.
·Gil joins New England with more than 180 games of experience across all competitions through eight seasons in the top flights of England and Spain – including stops at Aston Villa and Valencia CF – as well Spain’s second and third tiers.
Castillo Debuts for Revolution at Left Back
·Defender Edgar Castillo also made his Revolution debut in today's contest. He paced the Revs with 67 touches, and recorded four tackles and three fouls won.
·New England acquired Castillo, a U.S. international, in a trade with the Colorado Rapids in exchange for midfielder Kelyn Rowe on Dec. 18.
·Castillo played spent 11 seasons in Mexico's Liga MX, where he won multiple championships, before joining the Colorado Rapids last season.
Revolution Starting XI Sees Six Changes from 2018 Finale
·The Revolution's starting lineup saw six changes from last year's regular season finale vs. Montreal to today's season opener in Dallas. Brad Knighton, Edgar Castillo, Jalil Anibaba, Wilfried Zahibo, Scott Caldwell, and Carles Gil slotted in for Matt Turner, Michael Mancienne, Zachary Herivaux, Kelyn Rowe, Luis Caicedo, and Diego Fagundez.
·Defender Michael Mancienne, initially slated to start at center back, suffered an injury in warmups that forced him to miss this afternoon's game.
·Defender Andrew Farrell and forward Juan Fernando Caicedo were also ruled out for today's match with injuries.
GAME CAPSULE
Referee: Ismail Elfath
Assistant Referees: Eduardo Mariscal (AR1), Kathryn Nesbitt (AR2)
Fourth Official: Jon Freemon
VAR: Kevin Terry Jr.
Weather: 42° and Cloudy
Attendance: 14,327
Scoring Summary:
DAL – Michael Barrios 1 (Dominique Badji 1) 13'
NE – Carles Gil 1 (Antonio Delamea 1, Jalil Anibaba 1) 57'
Misconduct Summary:
NE – Wilfried Zahibo (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 19'
DAL – Reto Ziegler (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 56'
NE – Antonio Delamea (Yellow Card – Persistent Infringement) 70'
DAL – Dominique Badji (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 71'
New England Revolution: Brad Knighton; Edgar Castillo, Antonio Delamea, Jalil Anibaba, Brandon Bye; Cristian Penilla, Wilfried Zahibo, Scott Caldwell © (Luis Caicedo 90'+1'), Juan Agudelo (Diego Fagundez 77'); Carles Gil, Teal Bunbury
Substitutes Not Used: Cody Cropper, DeJuan Jones, Tajon Buchanan, Justin Rennicks
FC Dallas: Jesse Gonzalez; Ryan Hollingshead, Reto Ziegler ©, Matt Hedges, Reggie Cannon; Jacori Hayes (Paxton Pomykal 73'), Carlos Gruezo, Bryan Acosta; Santiago Mosquera (Jesus Ferreira
81'), Michael Barrios, Dominique Badji
Substitutes Not Used: Jimmy Maurer, Bressan, John Nelson, Pablo Aranguiz, Edwin Cerrillo
