BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. – The New England Revolution (10-14-9; 39 pts.) fell to the Chicago Fire (7-16-10; 31 pts.), 2-1, at Toyota Park on Sunday afternoon. New England enters Decision Day needing to defeat the Montreal Impact and overcome a goal differential of 12 to the Philadelphia Union in order to clinch a berth to the 2016 MLS Cup Playoffs. In addition, the club will need Philadelphia to lose to the New York Red Bulls.
Chicago Fire forward Michael de Leeuw scored the game’s opening goal in the ninth minute, and then Diego Fagundez brought New England level with an equalizer in the 43rd minute. The Revolution dominated the pace of play following a red card to Fire forward Luis Solignac in the 54th minute, but couldn’t score on goalkeeper Sean Johnson, who finished the match with three saves. Revolution goalkeeper Brad Knighton was issued a red card in the 73rd minute, bringing both clubs down to 10 men. Fire midfielder David Accam scored the game-winning goal seven minutes later, sealing the win for Chicago.
Full match statistics from RevolutionSoccer.net can be found HERE. In addition, footage from Head Coach Jay Heaps’ postgame press conference can be found HERE.
New England wraps up the 2016 regular season on Sunday, Oct. 23, when the club hosts the Montreal Impact at Gillette Stadium. The match kicks off at 4:00 p.m. ET and will be broadcast locally on Comcast SportsNet with Brad Feldman, Paul Mariner, and Jessie Coffield on the call.
New England Revolution 1, Chicago Fire 2
October 16, 2016 – Toyota Park (Bridgeview, Ill.)
Revs Fall to Chicago Fire; Remain Alive in Eastern Conference Playoff Race
The Revolution fell to the Chicago Fire, 2-1, dropping the club’s record to 10-14-9 (39 pts.) on the season.
New England enters Decision Day trailing the Philadelphia Union by three points for the sixth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. To usurp the Union for that playoff berth, the Revolution need to defeat the Montreal Impact and overcome a goal differential of 12 to Philadelphia.
Fagundez Scores Fifth Goal of 2016, Moves Into Contention for Revs’ Golden Boot
Midfielder Diego Fagundez scored his fifth goal of the 2016 regular season and the 33rd of his MLS career in the 43rd minute of today’s match.
With the tally, Fagundez moves within one goal of tying Lee Nguyen, Kei Kamara, and Juan Agudelo for the team-lead in goals entering the final match of the season. Nguyen currently leads the club’s Golden Boot race courtesy of his nine assists.
Fagundez paced New England in goals in 2013, when he scored 13 times in MLS play.
Nguyen Engineers New England’s Attack With Six Chances Created
Midfielder Lee Nguyen was influential in New England’s attack, finishing the match with six chances created. Nguyen’s six chances created are tied for the second most submitted by a Revolution player in a match this season. The captain also recorded six against LA Galaxy on May 8.
Nguyen and defender Chris Tierney are tied for club’s single-game season high in chances created with seven. Tierney reached the figure against the Chicago Fire on July 23, while Nguyen submitted seven against the Portland Timbers on April 27.
Nguyen ranks third among all MLS players in chances created for the season with 77.
New England, Chicago Trade Red Cards; Finish Match with 10 Players Each
Both clubs were issued red cards during today’s match. Fire forward Luis Solignac was ejected for violent conduct in the 54th minute, while Revolution goalkeeper Brad Knighton was sent off for denial of an obvious goal scoring opportunity in the 73rd minute.
Solignac’s red card marked the second opponent to earn an ejection against New England this season – the other coming from Felipe against New York on April 1.
Brad Knighton’s red card was his first since since Aug. 10, 2010, when he was a member of the Philadelphia Union. Knighton is the fourth Revolution player to be issued a red card this season. Bobby Shuttleworth took over in net for the final 17 minutes of the match.
Koffie Makes Return from Ankle Injury; Logs 19 Minutes
Midfielder Gershon Koffie replaced Kelyn Rowe as a substitute in the 71st minute, marking his first appearance since Sept. 10, when he suffered an ankle injury.
Koffie recorded 21 touches, 18 passes, two fouls won, and one foul conceded in 19 minutes.
Smith Makes First Appearance Since April 30
Defender Donnie Smith replaced London Woodberry as a substitute in the 58th minute, marking his first appearance since April 30. He slotted in a left back while Darrius Barnes moved inside to center back.
Smith’s appearance was his third of the season. He also started and played 90 minutes in back-to-back matches on April 27 against Portland and April 30 against Orlando.
Smith recorded 28 touches and 19 passes in 33 minutes.
Revolution Make Pair of Changes to Starting XI
Revolution Head Coach Jay Heaps made two changes to the starting lineup from New England’s most recent match on Oct. 1 against Sporting Kansas City. Defender Jose Goncalves returned to the starting lineup after missing the club’s last two matches with an injury and replaced defender Chris Tierney. Darrius Barnes slotted into Tierney’s spot at left back.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS
- 18th minute (SAVE) – Chicago Fire midfielder David Accam gets through the Revolution’s 18-yard box and finds a clean shot on net, but goalkeeper Brad Knighton comes up with a diving save to keep New England within one (WATCH).
- 41st minute (SAVE) – Brad Knighton robs the Chicago Fire of a second goal, delivering a clutch save on a point-blank shot attempt from Arturo Alvarez right on the doorstep of the net (WATCH).
- 43rd minute (GOAL) – Diego Fagundez brings the Revolution level with an equalizer in the 43rd minute, corralling a deflected pass in the penalty arc and slotting a right-footed, grounded shot past Fire goalkeeper Sean Johnson (WATCH).
- 54th minute (RED CARD) – The Revolution gain a man-advantage in the 54th minute, as Chicago Fire forward Luis Solignac is issued a red card for violent conduct on London Woodberry (WATCH).
- 61st minute (POST) – The Revolution come within inches of taking the lead as Juan Agudelo redirects a cross from Lee Nguyen but hits the crossbar. Darrius Barnes tries to head the rebound in from inside of Chicago’s six-yard box, but Sean Johnson makes the save (WATCH).
GAME CAPSULE
Referee: Baldomero Toledo
Assistant Referees: Mike Rottersman (AR1), Anthony Vasoli (AR2)
Fourth Official: Sorin Stoica
Weather: 70 Degrees and Cloudy
Attendance: 18,976
Scoring Summary:
CHI – Michael de Leeuw 5 (Brandon Vincent 3, David Accam 5) 9’
NE – Diego Fagundez 5 (Unassisted) 43’
CHI – David Accam 9 (Jonathan Campbell 1) 80’
Misconduct Summary:
NE – Kei Kamara (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 29’
CHI – Khaly Thiam (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 44’
NE – London Woodberry (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 51’
CHI – Luis Solignac (Red Card – Violent Conduct) 54’
NE – Brad Knighton (Red Card – Denial of Obvious Goal Scoring Opportunity) 73’
CHI – Matt Polster (Yellow Card – Time Wasting) 90’+2’
New England Revolution: Brad Knighton; Darrius Barnes (Bobby Shuttleworth 75’), Jose Goncalves, London Woodberry (Donnie Smith 58’), Andrew Farrell; Scott Caldwell; Diego Fagundez, Kelyn Rowe (Gershon Koffie 71’), Lee Nguyen ©; Juan Agudelo, Kei Kamara
Substitutes Not Used: Chris Tierney, Daigo Kobayashi, Steve Neumann, Teal Bunbury
Chicago Fire: Sean Johnson; Johan Kappelhof, Jonathan Campbell, Joao Meira, Brandon Vincent; Arturo Alvarez (Razvan Cocis 67’), Matt Polster, Khaly Thiam, David Accam (John Goossens 90’+6’); Luis Solignac, Michael de Leeuw © (David Arshakyan 86’)
Substitutes Not Used: Patrick McLain, Eric Gehrig, Michael Harrington, Michael Stephens
