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MLS New York Red Bulls

Red Bulls Look to Earn First Win of 2012 Saturday at Real Salt Lake

March 12, 2012 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
New York Red Bulls News Release


The Red Bulls enter Saturday's tilt with a 0-1-0 record after dropping their first game of the season at FC Dallas on Sunday. One of the Red Bulls' new additions for 2012, forward Kenny Cooper, had a successful debut, coming off the bench to score the Red Bulls' lone goal of the match against one of his former clubs. Rookie goalkeeper and Fordham University product Ryan Meara made his professional debut, and despite surrendering two goals, made four impressive saves to help keep New York in the match. Defender Markus Holgersson and midfielder Victor Palsson also made their MLS and club debuts in the match.

Real Salt Lake got their 2012 campaign off to a great start, defeating the defending Supporters' Shield and MLS Cup Champion Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday by a 3-1 score. The Galaxy took the lead off Edson Buddle's first goal of the season, and was ahead by a goal with 17 minutes remaining. However, the Utah side came back thanks to a Sean Franklin own goal and tallies by Javier Morales and Fabian Espindola to earn an impressive road result.

Last season, New York went 0-2-0 against Real Salt Lake. On Aug. 6, 2011, Salt Lake shut out New York 3-0 at Rio Tinto Stadium, and earned a 3-1 victory over New York on Sept. 21 at Red Bull Arena. New York is 3-4-7 all-time against RSL, with their last victory in the series coming on April 18, 2009. The teams played twice this preseason, with RSL taking both matches by a 1-0 score.

THIS WEEK

Red Bulls at Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday, March 17 at 10:00 PM ET (TV: MSG+)

NEXT WEEK

Red Bulls vs. Colorado Rapids at Red Bull Arena on Sunday, March 25 at 4:00 PM ET (TV: ESPN/ESPN Deportes)

HOME OPENER TICKETS CURRENTLY ON SALE

Tickets for the New York Red Bulls' 2012 MLS Regular Season home opener at Red Bull Arena against the Colorado Rapids on March 25 at 4:00 PM ET are on sale. More information can be found on www.newyorkredbulls.com/tickets.

2012 SEASON BEGINS WITH 2-1 LOSS TO FC DALLAS

Despite Kenny Cooper's first MLS goal for New York and a strong second half performance, the Red Bulls (0-1-0, 0 pts.) fell to FC Dallas, 2-1, at FC Dallas Stadium in front of a sellout crowd of 20,906 in the 2012 regular season opener for both teams Saturday afternoon.

FC Dallas took the lead in the 11th minute. A cross into the box was attempted to be cleared first by New York's Markus Holgersson and then Dax McCarty. The ball bounced off Blas Perez to Zach Loyd, who struck it with his left foot past goalkeeper Ryan Meara for the first goal of the match.

Meara was called upon in the 33rd minute to keep the score 1-0, as Stephen Keel's long ball from the back was deflected by Ricardo Villar's foot into the path of Perez. Perez rifled his point blank attempt right into the arms of Meara.

New York's best scoring chance of the first half came with a minute left before the break. After FC Dallas' Daniel Hernandez fouled McCarty from 23-yards-out, Thierry Henry took a quick free kick that beat a flat-footed Kevin Hartman and dinged off the right post.

The Red Bulls looked for an equalizer in the second half and Teemu Tainio had space seven minutes in to shoot it wide left off a quick New York throw-in. Moments later, Brek Shea found an on-rushing Villar, whose attempt was pushed away by Meara.

FC Dallas made the score 2-0 in the 61st minute. Villar intercepted a New York back pass and slid it to Perez. Perez gave it back to an on-rushing Villar and the midfielder chipped it over Meara and into the net.

New York controlled possession for much of the final 30 minutes and brought the deficit to within one in the 78th minute. Henry had possession in FC Dallas' defensive third and chipped it to Cooper, who beat Hartman to the ball and lobbed it over the "˜keeper for his first goal of the season. Four minutes later, Cooper tested Hartman from an acute angle and the FC Dallas goalkeeper tipped it over the crossbar.

RED BULLS ADD FOUR TO ROSTER

The Red Bulls announced on March 6 that the club has signed four new players to its roster: defender Tyler Ruthven, midfielder Brandon Barklage and forwards Jose Angulo and Jhonny Arteaga. Per league and club rules, the terms of each deal were not disclosed.

"We are excited to bring in these four players," said Red Bulls General Manager and Sporting Director Erik Soler. "Jose and Jhonny are both young players who developed in the New York area and are exciting prospects for the future. Brandon has some quality experience in Major League Soccer already and Tyler is another young defender that we think can develop well over time. All four of them did well in preseason to earn a spot on our roster. We look forward to monitoring their development this season and beyond."

Barklage, 25, has spent the past three seasons with D.C. United after the club selected him in the third round of the 2009 MLS SuperDraft (36th overall) out of Saint Louis University. The St. Louis, MO native has logged 341 minutes in 11 career Major League Soccer appearances. Barklage spent two seasons each on the collegiate level at the University of New Mexico and Saint Louis University. He began his college career at New Mexico, earning First Team All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation honors as a sophomore at the school in 2006. During his senior year in 2008 while at Saint Louis, Barklage was a Second Team All-Atlantic 10 selection.

Ruthven spent the 2011 season with the Atlanta Silverbacks of the NASL. The 23-year-old played in 27 games for Atlanta, scoring one goal, and earned the league's Defensive Player of the Week honors on July 26. He turned professional in 2010, signing with USL-2 side Harrisburg City Islanders. The Alpharetta, GA native played in eight games for the team, notching one goal. He began his college soccer career at the University of San Francisco, but transferred to the University of South Carolina in 2007 for his sophomore season. As a senior, he earned First Team All-Conference USA accolades.

Arteaga, 25, most recently played for USL Pro side FC New York in 2011. Arteaga led USL Pro this past season with 13 goals, and scored 16 in all competitions. In 2010, he featured for Polish third division side LKS Lomza, for whom he scored an impressive eight goals in just 14 appearances. Prior to playing in Poland, Arteaga played for USL PDL side Westchester Flames in 2009 and the Western Mass Pioneers of the USL Second Division in 2008. Arteaga grew up in Stamford, CT and played on the collegiate level at Dominican College, earning the Central Atlantic College Conference Player of the Year in 2007 as a senior.

Angulo, 24, played last season with the Harrisburg City Islanders of USL Pro, leading the club with nine goals. Prior to joining Harrisburg City, Angulo enjoyed a proficient season for the Central Jersey Spartans in 2010, recording 10 goals in 11 appearances for the USL PDL outfit. Angulo grew up in nearby Clifton, NJ, and played on the high school level at St. Benedict's Preparatory School in Newark, NJ where he was named a Parade Magazine All-American.

CLUB RELEASES STATEMENT ON LUKE RODGERS

The New York Red Bulls released the following statement regarding forward Luke Rodgers on March 8:

"Luke met with the United States Consulate in London earlier today (March 8) and the outcome was positive, as he took a step forward in his visa approval process to return to the country. There are still issues to be addressed. However, we are hopeful and quietly confident that Luke will be able to join the club soon. Because his case is still pending, we cannot elaborate any further."

MARQUEZ TO SERVE FINAL GAME OF THREE-GAME SUSPENSION SATURDAY

Red Bulls defender/midfielder Rafa Marquez will serve the final match of a three-match ban this Saturday when the Red Bulls face Real Salt Lake. The suspension stems from a post-match altercation in the Red Bulls' 1-0 loss to the Los Angeles Galaxy in the first leg of the teams' Western Conference Semifinals series last postseason. Marquez served the first game of the suspension in the second leg of the Western Conference Semifinals, a 2-1 victory for the Galaxy, and Marquez missed the Red Bulls' 2-1 loss to FC Dallas last weekend. Marquez will be available for selection for the Red Bulls' home opener, on Sunday, March 25 against the Colorado Rapids.

RED BULLS, MSG NETWORKS REVEAL 2012 TELEVISION SCHEDULE

The New York Red Bulls and MSG Networks unveiled the official television schedule for the upcoming 2012 season. MSG and MSG+ will televise 19 MLS regular season of the team's 34 matches. In addition, MSG televised New York's preseason friendly match labeled "Red Bull Reto del Sol" on Feb. 23 against Mexican side, UNAM Pumas, live at Chase Field in Phoenix, AZ on MSG+ - a game that ended 0-0.

The first MLS regular season match that will be on the MSG networks is the Red Bulls' clash against Real Salt Lake on Saturday, March 17 at 10:00 PM ET with a 15-minute pre-game show starting at 9:45 PM on MSG+. MSG Networks will produce pre- and post-game shows for all Red Bulls home games and also select away matches. All game telecasts will be produced in a high definition format.

Veteran sports anchor and reporter Steve Cangialosi returns for his fifth season as the team's play-by-play announcer and 11th covering the Red Bulls, while former New York Cosmos goalkeeper Shep Messing starts his 12th season as an expert analyst. MSG Networks host and experienced sideline reporter Tina Cervasio will be back for her fifth season covering the Red Bulls, while Eddie Caggianelli begins his 11th season producing matches.

New York's remaining 15 regular season matches will be exclusively shown by MLS national partners ESPN Networks (seven times: four on ESPN, three on ESPN2) and the NBC Sports Group (eight times: six on NBCSN, two on NBC). In addition, Galavision will telecast six Red Bulls matches in Spanish (MSG Networks will telecast those games simultaneously in English).

The full 2012 regular season television schedule can be seen at www.newyorkredbulls.com/schedule.

RED BULLS ACADEMY UPDATE

Red Bulls Academy teams go unbeaten vs. Oakwood and South Central Premier this weekend:

In a wild start to their weekend, the Red Bulls Academy Under-18 side drew with Oakwood 4-4. Twice trailing by two goals, the Red Bulls came back to take a 4-3 lead on braces by both Scotty Thomsen and Brandon Allen. A late penalty kick conversion by Oakwood forced a 4-4 tie and a share of the spoils. On Sunday, the U-18 side drew again, this time a 1-1 deadlock with South Central Premier. The Red Bulls opened the scoring in the 40th minute when Allen sprung Freddy Elliot, who converted his chance. However, the Red Bulls surrendered the game-tying goal in the 55th minute on a penalty kick, and neither team could find the back of the net again.

The Red Bulls Under-16 side started the weekend with a hard fought 1-1 draw with Oakwood. The Red Bulls took the lead on seven minutes when Arun Basuljevic took down a John Toher cross and buried his chance. Just before halftime, Oakwood leveled the match on an own goal that came off a corner kick. Despite trading chances throughout the second half, neither side could make another breakthrough. On Sunday, the U-16 side rebounded with a 2-0 victory over South Central Premier. Adam Najem notched a goal and an assist to lead the Red Bulls, who were bolstered by a stout defensive effort.

Goals from Tyler Stowell and Harrison Steadman paced the Under-15 Red Bulls to a 3-1 win over Oakwood on Saturday. On Sunday, the squad followed it up with a victory over South Central Premier, with Dante Perez scoring three times early in the match to open an insurmountable lead for the Red Bulls.

The Red Bulls Pre-Academy Under-14 side played two matches this weekend and notched a victory in both. The squad faced off against Oakwood on Saturday, coming away with a 2-0 win. Anthony Sileo and Israel Guerrero notched the goals for the Red Bulls, while Max Lurie and Tom Lapinas split time in goal and earned the shutout. On Sunday, the Red Bulls backed up their strong performance with another, a 5-0 home victory over South Central Premier Academy. Kyle Zajec led the way with two goals, while Lapinas and Nick Giordano combined in goal for another shutout.

The Red Bulls Under-13 Pre Academy side also went 2-0 this weekend with wins over Oakwood and South Central Premier. On Saturday, Mevlan Lebiti notched three goals, while Rodrigo D'Andrea and Dante Greer were among the goal scorers in a lopsided Red Bulls victory. On Sunday against South Central Premier, Mitko Bozinov and Hunter Pinho combined in goal for a shutout victory as the Red Bulls cruised to ensure an unbeaten weekend. Both the Under-13 and Under-14 sides return to action next weekend against Potomac and D.C. United.

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