CHICAGO (September 23, 2023) – The New England Revolution (13-6-10; 49 pts. – 6th in East) came from behind to draw Chicago Fire FC, 2-2, at Soldier Field on Saturday night. Tomás Chancalay and Carles Gil provided the scoring for New England, while Earl Edwards Jr. made five saves. With the result, the Revolution clinched a berth in the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs, the team’s fourth trip to the postseason in the last five years.
In the eighth minute, Edwards Jr. parried the first threat from Chicago as he got down quickly to save a laser off the foot of Fabian Herbers, before making another save on Jairo Torres in the 10th minute. Chancalay turned the tides for New England soon after with a stinging shot on target in the 16th minute, which was tipped over the bar by Chicago goalkeeper Chris Brady. Only one minute later, it was Chancalay who won the battle as he collected a rebound inside the area and rocketed a shot past Brady to put the Revolution ahead 1-0.
New England’s advantage was erased only 90 seconds later, as Chicago’s Brian Gutiérrez tallied the equalizer. On the other side of halftime, the hosts took the lead behind Gastón Giménez’s goal in the 54th minute. Revolution captain Carles Gil pulled New England level at 2-2 in the 59th minute with his team-high ninth goal of the season, his 22nd overall goal contribution this season. Noel Buck started the move down and sent a cross in from left side, which Giacomo Vrioni gently laid off to Gil, whose shot deflected past Brady into the center of the net.
New England returns home to Gillette Stadium for the season’s second meeting with Charlotte FC on Saturday, September 30 at 7:30 p.m. ET (MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, 98.5 The Sports Hub, 1260 AM Nossa Radio).
TEAM NOTES
- Since the start of 2020, New England’s 95 away goals (including playoffs) are the most in MLS.
- The Revolution’s away record moves to 3-6-6 with two away games remaining – Oct. 7 at Orlando City SC and Oct. 14 at Nashville SC.
- New England returns home to Gillette Stadium to defend the league’s only remaining unbeaten home record (10-0-4) next Saturday, Sept. 30 vs. Charlotte.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Carles Gil recorded his ninth goal of the season, giving him 22 goal contributions on the year (T-6th in MLS) and three on this three-game road stand (2G, 1A).
- Gil (30G, 61A) is now the second 30-goal and 60-assist player in Revolution history, joining Steve Ralston (42G, 73A), and one of only six active MLS players to reach the 30/60 mark.
- Tomás Chancalay scored his third MLS goal for New England in his sixth MLS appearance (five starts). The 24-year-old Argentinian finished the night with a game-high six shots, two on target.
- Dave Romney, who has played every minute for the Revolution this season, recorded his 200th MLS regular season appearance. Romney leads all MLS outfield players in starts and minutes since the start of 2020.
- Giacomo Vrioni notched his second assist of the year, the primary helper on Gil’s goal.
- 18-year-old Noel Buck returned to the starting lineup for his 16th start and 21st appearance of the season.
- Earl Edwards Jr. has made six consecutive starts, a career high, as his season record moves to 2-2-3.
GAME CAPSULE
New England Revolution 2, Chicago Fire FC 2
September 23, 2023 – Soldier Field (Chicago, Ill.)
Referee: Tim Ford
Assistant Referees: Adam Garner (AR1), Mike Nickerson (AR2)
Fourth Official: Jon Freemon
Video Assistant Referee: Kevin Terry Jr.
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Jozef Batko
Weather: 70 degrees and partly cloudy
Attendance: 20,129
Scoring Summary:
NE – Tomás Chancalay (Unassisted) 16’
CHI – Brian Gutiérrez 2 (Jonathan Dean 1) 18’
CHI - Gaston Giménez 1 (Brian Gutiérrez 11) 54’
NE – Carles Gil 9 (Giacomo Vrioni 2) 59’
Misconduct Summary:
CHI – Gaston Giménez (Yellow Card – Off the Ball Foul) 65’
CHI – Ousmane Doumbia (Yellow Card – Hard Foul) 90+8’
NE - Tomás Chancalay (Yellow Card – Hard Foul) 90+10’
New England Revolution: Earl Edwards Jr; DeJuan Jones, Dave Romney, Omar Gonzalez, Matt Polster;; Mark-Anthony Kaye; Nacho Gil (Emmanuel Boateng 86’) Carles Gil ©, Noel Buck (Ian Harkes 62’), Tomás Chancalay; Giacomo Vrioni (Bobby Wood 62’).
Substitutes Not Used: Jacob Jackson, Esmir Bajraktarević, Andrew Farrell, Christian Makoun, Thomas McNamara, Ben Sweat
Chicago Fire FC: Chris Brady; Jonathan Dean, Wyatt Omsberg, Carlos Terán, Miguel Navarro; Ousmane Doumbia, Gaston Giménez ©; Fabian Herbers (Maren Haile-Selasesi 67’), Brian Gutiérrez (Daniel Aceves 90+4’), Jairo Torres (Georgias Koutsias 77’); Kei Kamara (Kacper Przybylko 78’)
Substitutes: Spencer Richley, Kendall Burks
Full statistics available HERE.
