Revolution II draw 1-1 with Chicago Fire II, lose first penalty shootout of 2023 5-3

FOXBOROUGH, MA— The New England Revolution II (10-5-5, 39 pts.) tied Chicago Fire II (6-7-7, 27 pts). in a 1-1 match but were then defeated 5-3 in penalties on Sunday afternoon.

The match kicked off at 7:00 p.m. ET at Seat Geek Stadium in Bridgeview, Illinois.

Sunday night at SeatGeek Stadium 🏟️

📺 https://t.co/umGiwgWlEA pic.twitter.com/oLJ4jsMLZT

— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) July 30, 2023

The team started their lineup in a 4-3-3 formation with goalkeeper Jacob Jackson starting in the net with a backline of (left back) Peyton Miller, (center backs) Pierre Cayet and Santiago Suarez, along with (right back) Victor Souza. The midfield consisted of Jack Panayotou (left), Tommy McNamara (center), and Joshua Bolma (right). The forward roles were manned by Damian Rivera (left), Esmir Bajraktarević (right), and Jordan Adebayo-Smith (central) as the lone striker.

The squad today featured 5 first-team rostered players as Jack Panayotou, Tommy McNamara, Joshua Bolma, Esmir Bajraktarević and Damian Rivera all started the match.

This is Tommy McNamara’s first professional start in 2023. He last appeared in a match for the Revolution in October of 2022.

Sunny skies and the Starting XI ☀️ pic.twitter.com/ox7mXOAKh7

— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) July 31, 2023

The match began with Chicago Fire II starting from the center circle. Chicago elected to move the ball backwards and began to build out of the back to start the match.

Chicago Fire II’s first chance of the match came in the 7th minute when #47 Billy Hency’s header from the center of hte box misses the top right corner of the goal.

Less than a minute later, Chicago had 2 more chances, one by #49 Luka Prpa and once more by #47 Billy Hency. Both chances were saved by Jacob Jackson.

New England’s first chance of the match came in the 18th minute when Jordan Adebayo-Smith’s close-range right-footed shot went just wide of the left post.

In the 26th minute, Chicago FC II midfielder #48 Charlie Ostrem was issued a yellow card for a foul on Esmir Bajraktarević.

In the 36th minute, New England’s next chance came from a shot by Esmir Bajraktarević, however, his effort from the center of the box was too high.

Entering the 39th minute, New England had yet another chance when midfielder Tommy McNamara’s right footed shot from outside the box went just wide of the right post.

The match entered halftime level at 0-0.

Scoreless through the first half. pic.twitter.com/77pXZyOtdt

— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) July 31, 2023

In the 51st minute, Revolution II midfielder #26 Tommy McNamara was issued a yellow card for a foul on Chicago Fire forward #44 Noeh Hernandez.

In the 54th minute, Chicago FC II goalkeeper #25 Jeffrey Gal was issued a yellow card for time wasting.

Entering the 58th minute, New England gained the 1-0 advantage.

Let’s get the party started 🕺

Panayotou volleys home the opener for @NERevolution2! pic.twitter.com/5Tw8eKOJPT

— MLS NEXT Pro (@MLSNEXTPRO) July 31, 2023

Following a switch of the field started by midfielder Tommy McNamara, he elected to play backwards to find Victor Souza, who then played a square pass left to find Pierre Cayet. He then played the ball into space to find Joshua Bolma. He flicked the ball onto Peyton Miller. His left footed service found the left foot of Jack Panayotou as his left-footed volley went into the top left of the net past Chicago Fire goalkeeper #25 Jeffrey Gal for the 1-0 advantage. The goal is Panayotou’s 3rd goal of the season.

In the 60th minute, Revolution II head coach Clint Peay made his first change of the match by substituting midfielder Tommy McNamara and replacing him with midfielder Jake Rozhansky.

Not even 2 minutes later, Chicago leveled the match.

AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE FROM @ChicagoFireFCII!

Just three minutes after conceding, Hernandez levels things at 1-1! pic.twitter.com/yBlfx1osv4

— MLS NEXT Pro (@MLSNEXTPRO) July 31, 2023

Following a long ball over the top by Chicago Fire midfielder #35 Sergio Oregel, he found #48 Charlie Ostrem who managed to take on Victor Souza. His left footed delivery into the box found #44 Noeh Hernandez. His pass to #49 Luka Prpa was then set back for Hernandez for the left footed shot into the bottom right corner past Jacob Jackson. This is Noeh Hernandez’s 2nd goal of the season.

In the 73rd minute, Revolution II midfielder Jake Rozhansky was issued a yellow card for a foul on Chicago Fire II midfielder #46 Matteo Kidd.

In the 75th minute, Revolution II head coach Clint Peay made his second and third change of the match by substituting midfielders Esmir Bajraktarevic and Joshua Bolma, and replacing them with midfielders Marcos Dias and Malcolm Fry.

One of New England’s best chances of the half came in the 78th minute when Damian Rivera’s left footed shot was saved by #25 Jeffrey Gal. His effort led to a rebound that Jordan Adebayo-Smith met, but unfortunately his effort was blocked.

In the 82nd minute, Revolution II defender Pierre Cayet was issued a yellow card for a foul on Chicago Fire II forward #44 Noeh Hernandez.

In the 87th minute, Chicago FC II #25 O. Glasgow was issued a yellow card for a foul on Revolution midfielder Peyton Miller.

In the 92nd minute, Revolution II head coach Clint Peay made his fourth and final change of the match by substituting defender Santiago Suarez and replacing him with defender Jacob Akanyirige.

After the 90 +5 minutes, the match ended 1-1 and entered a penalty shootout to decide who receives the extra point.

90′ – We remain tied at one and head to the shootout.#NERevsII 1 | CHI 1

— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) July 31, 2023

Chicago Fire II’s first penalty kick taker was #44 Noeh Hernandez. His left-footed shot went into the bottom left corner to give Chicago the 1-0 lead.

The Revolution’s first penalty kick taker was Marcos Dias, His right footed shot into the bottom right corner was saved by Chicago goalkeeper #25 Jeffrey Gal to give Chicago the 1-0 lead and full advantage in the remainder of the shootout.

Chicago Fire II’s second penalty kick taker was #53 Jake Fuderer. His left-footed shot went into the bottom right corner to give Chicago the 2-0 lead.

The Revolution’s second penalty kick taker was Jake Rozhansky. His right footed shot was converted into the bottom left past #25 Jeffrey Gal to lower Chicago’s lead to 2-1.

Next up for Chicago Fire II was #48 Charlie Ostrem. His left footed shot went right into the bottom right corner to give Chicago the 3-1 lead.

Revolution defender Jacob Akanyirige stepped up to take the third penalty kick, and his right footed shot went into the bottom right corner past #25 Jeffrey Gal to keep the match close at 3-2.

Next up for Chicago Fire II was #46 Matteo Kidd. His right footed shot went directly into the bottom right corner to make the scoreline 4-2.

Revolution forward Damian Rivera stepped up to take the fourth penalty kick and to keep New England’s hopes alive. His right footed shot went into the top left corner to make the scoreline 4-3.

To win the match for the Chicago Fire II was defender #54 Luke Rochester. His left footed shot went directly into the high center of the goal to give Chicago Fire II the 5-3 victory in the penalty shootout.

Heading home with a point. pic.twitter.com/UYBcSVGa7l

— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) July 31, 2023

With the draw and shoot-out loss, the Revolution II gain 1 point and move to 4th place across MLS NEXT Pro, as they trail Crown Legacy FC (47 pts.), Colorado Rapids 2 (45 pts.), and Austin FC II (40 pts.).

The New England Revolution II (10-5-5, 39 pts.) return home to face New York Red Bulls II (10-6-4, 36 pts). The match is on Sunday, August 6th at Gillette Stadium and is set to kickoff at 6:00 p.m. All MLS, MLS NEXT Pro matches will be available through the new MLS Streaming Service on the Apple TV app.

(Editor’s Note: For more of Burt Granofsky’s photos, click on the link)