FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (August 9, 2024) – The New England Revolution battled New York City FC to a 1-1 draw on a rainy Friday night at Gillette Stadium in the Leagues Cup 2024 Round of 32, falling in the subsequent penalty shootout, 7-6. Forward Bobby Wood notched his second goal in as many games, while defender Brandon Bye recorded his first assist of the year. The visitors topped New England in the ensuing penalty shootout, 7-6, to end the Revolution's Leagues Cup run in the first round of the Knockout Stage.
As the rain fell in Foxborough, New York City opened the scoring in the 35th minute after a video review awarded the visitors an opportunity from the spot. Santiago Rodriguez converted the attempt for his second goal of Leagues Cup 2024. New England quickly rallied, with Wood leveling the score just five minutes later. The Hawaiian forward buried a header from close range, capitalizing on a stellar cross from Bye on the right flank. Wood’s tally marked his second goal of the tournament, while the helper was Bye's first since returning from an injury suffered in last year's Leagues Cup tournament.
Wood nearly recorded a brace before the halftime whistle, as the striker received a low, driven cross from left back Peyton Miller in the center of the 18-yard box, but his shot skipped wide of the right post. Earlier in the 29th minute, Wood was able to find the back of the net with a powerful shot from outside the area, but the assistant referee's offside flag nullified the goal.
Miller, 16, played 79 minutes in his fourth consecutive start and paced the team with two key passes on the night. In central defense, Xavier Arreaga completed a game-best 96.2 percent of his pass attempts. Goalkeeper Aljaž Ivačič posted a five-save performance in net tonight, including an impressive tip over the bar on a drilled shot by New York City forward Santiago Rodríguez.
In the 79th minute, defender Will Sands made his second appearance for the club in as many games. He played against his twin brother and New York City midfielder, James Sands, for the first time in their professional careers. Revolution Homegrown player and Groton, Mass. native, Malcolm Fry also entered the match as a second-half substitute, marking the local forward’s third appearance with Revolution’s first team.
With the club's Leagues Cup 2024 campaign now over, the Revolution will remain idle until Saturday, August 24, when the club resumes the MLS regular season on the road against CF Montreal. The 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Stade Saputo will air on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app in English and Spanish. Listen to the Revolution's local radio calls on 98.5 The Sports Hub, with Brad Feldman and Charlies Davies, and on 1260 AM Nossa Radio USA in Portuguese.
MATCH NOTES
- Friday's match marked the fourth different competition in which the Revolution have faced New York City FC over the past four seasons (regular season play, MLS Cup Playoffs, Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup).
- The Revolution have now won or drawn their last four games.
- New England remains unbeaten in regulation during Leagues Cup play (2-0-5).
- Bobby Wood scored for a second straight game in Leagues Cup, heading home an equalizer late in the first half. Wood, making his fifth straight start in all competitions, finished the night with two shots.
- Brandon Bye registered his first assist of 2024 on Wood's tally, his second helper in six career Leagues Cup appearances. Bye's last assist came on July 26, 2023 in last year's Leagues Cup group stage.
- Goalkeeper Aljaž Ivačič logged five saves in Friday's contest.
- Xavier Arreaga started for the 17th time in 18 matches across all competitions since joining the club back in April. The Ecuadorian completed 96.2 percent of his pass attempts, a game high.
- Ian Harkes started for the 12th straight match in all competitions for New England, surpassing 2,500 minutes played for the club.
GAME CAPSULE
Leagues Cup 2024 - Round of 32
New England Revolution vs. New York City FC
August 9, 2024 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
Referee: Julio Luna
Assistant Referee: Juan Tipaz
Assistant Referee: Cristian Alvarado
Fourth Official: Walter Lopez Castellanos
Video Asst. Referee: Joe Dickerson
Assistant VAR: Melissa Borjas Pastrana
Weather: 79 degrees and showers
Attendance: 7,267
Scoring Summary:
NYC - Santiago Rodriguez 2 (Penalty Kick) 35'
NE - Bobby Wood 2 (Brandon Bye 1) 40'
Penalty Shootout:
NE - Tommy McNamara (Goal)
NYC - Alonso Martinez (Goal)
NE - Matt Polster (Goal)
NYC - Thiago Martins (Goal)
NE - Ian Harkes (Goal)
NYC - Maxi Moralez (Goal)
NE - Xavier Arreaga (Goal)
NYC - James Sands (Goal)
NE - Brandon Bye (Goal)
NYC - Santiago Rodriguez (Goal)
NE - Jack Panayotou (Goal)
NYC - Julian Fernandez (Goal)
NE - Mark-Anthony Kaye (Missed)
NYC - Justin Haak (Goal)
Misconduct Summary:
NYC - Santiago Rodriguez (Yellow Card - Persistent Infringement) 41'
NYC - James Sands (Yellow Card - Hard Foul) 45'+2
NYC - Justin Haak (Yellow Card - Tactical Foul) 90'+5
New England Revolution: Aljaž Ivačič; Peyton Miller (Will Sands 79'), Xavier Arreaga, Dave Romney, Brandon Bye; Mark-Anthony Kaye, Ian Harkes, Matt Polster ©; Emmanuel Boateng (Tommy McNamara 61'), Jack Panayotou, Bobby Wood (Malcolm Fry 85').
Substitutes Not Used: Earl Edwards Jr., J.D. Gunn, Andrew Farrell, Nick Lima, Jonathan Mensah, Ryan Spaulding.
New York City FC: Matt Freese; Tayvon Gray, Birk Risa (Julian Fernandez 81'), Thiago Martins ©, Christian McFarlane; James Sands, Keaton Parks (Justin Haak 58'); Hannes Wolf (Maxi Moralez 58'), Santiago Rodriguez, Agustin Ojeda; Jovan Mijatovic (Adrian Martinez 65').
Substitutes Not Used: Luis Barraza, Tomás Romero, Mounsef Bakrar, Maximo Carrizo, Rio Hope-Gund, Mitja Ilenic, Kevin O’Toole, Strahinja Tanasijevic.
