POSTGAME NOTES: Revolution Draw Chicago Fire FC, 2-2

Wilfrid Kaptoum, Gustavo Bou score as New England extends unbeaten streak to seven

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Revolution (20-4-6; 66 pts.) battled Chicago Fire FC (7-16-7; 30 pts.) to a 2-2 draw on Saturday night at Gillette Stadium. Wilfrid Kaptoum delivered the opening goal of the match on an unassisted tally from the top of the box in the 47^th minute. After Chicago’s Álvaro Medrán netted the equalizer for the visitors in the 49^th minute, Gustavo Bou converted on Carles Gil’s assist for the in the 76^th minute. Chicago closed the scoring in the 88^th minute behind Ignacio Aliseda’s goal from Brian Gutierrez’s assist.

New England’s lead in the Supporters’ Shield standings grew to nine points over Seattle Sounders FC, as the Revolution’s 66 points through 30 games are the most in MLS history at this stage of the season. With tonight’s result, New England extends its unbeaten streak to seven matches. The Revs have not lost in their last nine home contests, moving to 6-0-3 in Foxborough since July 7. Against Chicago, the Revs move to 3-0-3 in the last six meetings.

Kaptoum’s unassisted strike early in the second half marked the Cameroonian midfielder’s first MLS goal. The 25-year-old FC Barcelona product owns one goal and one assist in his last two appearances.

Bou reclaimed the team’s scoring lead with his 14^th tally of the season, fourth best in the MLS Golden Boot race. The Argentinian striker has delivered two goals and three assists over the last four games. Bou’s 40 combined goals and assists lead all MLS players since he entered the league in July 2019.

Carles Gil added his MLS-best 17^th assist on Bou’s goal to move within two helpers of tying the club’s single-season record. The Spanish midfielder registered five chances created on the night, giving him a career-high 113 chances created on the season – also a new club mark. Gil needs only 11 more chances created over the final four games to set a new MLS record (124).

New England returns to action with a visit to D.C. United on Wednesday night at Audi Field. The midweek match kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET on WSBK-TV38, myRITV, 98.5 The Sports Hub HD2, and 1260 AM Nossa Radio.

POSTGAME NOTES

New England Revolution 2, Chicago Fire FC 2

October 16, 2021 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)

Team Notes:

• The New England Revolution drew at home with Chicago Fire FC on Saturday night, 2-2, moving their record to 20-4-6 (66 points) on the season.
• The Revolution maintain an 18-point lead in the Eastern Conference and grow their lead to nine points in the Supporters’ Shield standings over Seattle Sounders FC.
• New England extended its home-unbeaten streak (6-0-3) to nine matches. The Revs’ 2.40 points per home game remains best in MLS.
• The Revolution’s 66 points are the most in MLS history through 30 games. New England needs seven points from the final four games to set a new single-season points record (72 – LAFC, 2019).
• The Revs’ 59 goals and 31 first-half tallies both lead the league. The club’s 59 goals are a club record.
• With only four losses on the season, the Revolution remain on course to set a new club mark for fewest losses in a season (7 – 2005).

• Bruce Arena made two changes from the club’s most last match on September 29 at CF Montreal. Midfielder Wilfrid Kaptoum and forward Teal Bunbury start in place of Tajon Buchanan and Adam Buksa, respectively.

Individual Notes:    

• Gustavo Bou scored his team-leading 14^th goal in the second half, chipping Chicago goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina after a long-range pass from Carles Gil. Bou led the team with six shots, including three on target, and added a pair of key passes.
• Bou now has 40 career goals and assists in the regular season, most in MLS since he debuted on July 17, 2019.
• Bou moves ahead of Adam Buksa for the team’s scoring lead. They constitute the first pair of Revolution players with 13-plus goals in the same season.
• Carles Gil recorded his league-leading 17^th assist of the season on Bou’s tally. His 17 assists are two shy of tying the club record (Steve Ralston – 19, 2002).
• Gil added five chances created to set a new career high and club record with 113 on the season. Gil is now 11 chances created away from matching Diego Valeri’s MLS record (124) set in 2019.
• Wilfrid Kaptoum scored his first MLS goal from outside the box in the 47^th minute. The midfielder, who appeared in his 20^th match of the season on Saturday, finished his night with two shots and three tackles.
• Adam Buksa returned from international duty with Poland, playing 32 minutes off the bench and registering a team-high three shots on target. Buksa is three shots shy of 100 on the year and needs five more to set a new club record for a season (101 – Wolde Harris, 2000).
• Emmanuel Boateng played 22 minutes as a second-half substitute, creating a pair of chances and completing 14 of his 16 passes.
• Matt Turner made three saves to remain unbeaten at home this season, moving to 10-0-3 at Gillette Stadium.

GAME CAPSULE

Referee: Joseph Dickerson

Assistant Referees: Cory Richardson (AR1); Gianni Facchini (AR2)

Fourth Official: Robert Sibiga

Video Assistant Referee: Jose Carlos Rivero

Attendance: 28,414

Weather: 68 degrees and cloudy

Scoring Summary:

NE- Wilfrid Kaptoum 1 (Unassisted) 47’

CHI- Álvaro Medrán 2 (Jhon Espinoza 1) 49’

NE- Gustavo Bou 14 (Carles Gil 17) 76’

CHI- Ignacio Aliseda 4 (Brian Gutierrez 2) 88’

Misconduct Summary:

CHI- Federico Navarro (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 60’

NE- Tajon Buchanan (Yellow Card- Dissent) 90+3’

CHI- Miguel Navarro (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 90+4’

New England Revolution: Matt Turner; DeJuan Jones, Henry Kessler, Andrew Farrell, Brandon Bye; Matt Polster, Wilfrid Kaptoum (Emmanuel Boateng 67’), Tommy McNamara (Tajon Buchanan 58’), Carles Gil ©; Teal Bunbury (Adam Buksa 58’), Gustavo Bou

Substitutes Not Used: Brad Knighton, Jon Bell, A.J. DeLaGarza, Christian Mafla, Luis Caicedo, Arnór Traustason

Chicago Fire FC: Gabriel Slonina; Jonathan Bornstein ©, Mauricio Pineda, Johan Kappelhof; Jhon Espinoza (Wyatt Omsberg 77’), Stanislav Ivanov (Brian Gutierrez 69’), Federico Navarro (Elliot Collier 81’), Álvaro Medrán, Miguel Ángel Navarro; Ignacio Aliseda, Robert Beric (Chinoso Offor 69’)

Substitutes Not Used: Bobby Shuttleworth, Luka Stojanovic, Javier Casas, Alex Monis

POSTGAME QUOTES: New England Revolution 2 vs. Chicago Fire FC 2

Revolution Sporting Director & Head Coach Bruce Arena

On tonight’s match:

Arena: “We should have won that game. We had chances to get the third goal. We should have been better closing out the game at the end.”

On if the 17-day break between matches played a role:

Arena: “No.”

On if the Revolution controlled the match:

Arena: “Yeah, in segments. They played very well, I thought, in the last 15 minutes of the first half.”

On if he is concerned about giving up goals quickly after scoring:

Arena: “No, not at all. I sleep well with that stuff.”

On Wilfred Kaptoum’s development:

Arena: “He’s getting better. He still has to pick it up. He’s not used to the tempo of the game in this league. He’s got to pick it up a little bit more, but he’s getting better.”

On if he is happy with the team’s decision making:

Arena: “It could have been better, for sure. I think we had plenty of opportunities to get the third goal and the ball had to move a little quicker. Then, the decision making on the ball had to be better.”

On Emmanuel Boateng’s performance:

Arena: “He gave us good energy. He did a good job. I thought the three players that came into the game gave us good energy, helped us in the attack. We were obviously looking for that second goal and got it. The third goal was staring at us and we didn’t finish off a few plays. But I thought [Ema] Boateng, [Adam] Buksa, and [Tajon] Buchanan did well. I think Tajon had to make some better decisions on the ball.”

On Brandon Bye “ball watching”:

Arena: “Yeah, he continues to have some of those issues. He should be at this point in his career, with the number of games he’s had, be better in those situations. So, it’s got to get better, for sure.”

On if he puts a lot of stock into a game like tonight after the long layoff:

Arena: “We treat it like every game we play. It doesn’t matter whether we had 16 or 17 days off or not. We treat it like every game. We look at the good and the bad. Then we move forward and get on with the next game.”

Revolution Midfielder Emmanuel Boateng

On his role in tonight’s match

Boateng: “I’m just happy to be on the field. I just want to be there and help out the team. So, when I came on, I was initially supposed to start in the middle and then when we were attacking get a little bit closer to the wings and help. I came on and immediately we got a goal. So, my job was at that point to just help facilitate the position, keep us going, and be a little bit more central with Tajon [Buchanan] to tuck in. So, that’s how the game rolled on.”

On returning from injury: 

Boateng: “Yeah, I feel good. The way we’re playing is good. I have a lot of good players around me. So, it’s just easy to come back out there. I feel good being part of the team again and just helping out.”

On the outlook after tonight’s result

Boateng: “We’re not happy with a tie for sure. You can go into the locker room, everybody’s pissed off as if we lost. So, I think that’s a good mentality for this group. I know Monday everybody’s going to come back in training ready to fight and it will get us ready for the next game for sure.”

On the Revolution midfield:

Boateng: “Yeah, I’ve just been working at it in training. I know Carles [Gil], his movements, where he wants to be, especially with Tajon [Buchanan] too, just get the ball to him out on the flanks and let him create. It’s been a year now with these guys and I feel pretty comfortable knowing their tendencies, where they want the ball, and what kind of movements they’re going to make.”

On mistakes in the game:

Boateng: “Yeah, just fell asleep a little bit there right after the first goal to give up a goal like that. The same thing happened in Montreal, which we’ve been talking about just having the mentality right. We have to be switched on and not let them score. That was a little disappointing. We still got back in the game with a chance to win it. Then, just to give up the second. I need to watch the second goal a little bit more, see what actually happened. We should see a game like this out.”

On Wilfred Kaptoum’s performance:

Boateng: “Wilfred [Kaptoum] is a great player. We need him for sure. He creates a lot in the midfield, he works hard, he defends, and is a great, positive guy in the locker room as well. It’s good for him to get that. He got an assist in the last game in Montreal and to get this goal too, it’s good for him. It’s good for his confidence and I think he’s going to help us down the stretch.”

On team’s mentality after tonight:

Boateng: “I wish you guys would be able to see us on Monday. Come into the locker room, see how guys will be ready to bounce back right away. The good thing is we have another game in three or four days, so we have a chance to right it. A lot of guys are going to be pissed, and they are already pissed, you can go into the locker room there’s probably only three guys left. I know we’re going to turn this around. It’s not like we’re in a crisis, it’s just a bad result and we’ll be better in the next game.”

Revolution Midfielder Wilfrid Kaptoum

*Quotes translated from Spanish*

On his goal:

Kaptoum: “I felt very happy. That’s how I felt, scoring it at home in front of our fans and our supporters. I felt very grateful for it, especially for all the happiness and that my teammates showed and that kind of helped me throughout the game.”

On how he has adjusted to MLS:

Kaptoum: “When I got here, well it was a different league and I feel, obviously, I feel much better right now. I think I am very much adapted to both the intensity and rhythm of matches and games in MLS and I think I’m continuing to improve.”

On what scoring his first goal means for his confidence going forward:

Kaptoum: “The goal gives me confidence to continue improving and help the team as best I can. I hope to reach that point and continue to help the team.”

On shifting focus to Wednesday’s match at D.C. United:

Kaptoum: “There was the tie – I mean, obviously, we wanted to win. It’s in the past now. We continue to work hard. We have tough games coming up, and then looking even further at the playoffs, we have to continue to improve to be cohesive both offensively and defensive.”