Sports stats



MLS New York Red Bulls

Weekly Update: Red Bulls Look to Rebound on Saturday, Host Revolution

April 23, 2012 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
New York Red Bulls News Release


he Red Bulls will try to end a two-match winless streak on Saturday when they host the New England Revolution at 3:30 PM ET (TV: NBC Sports Network; Radio: WLIB 1190 AM).

The Red Bulls come into the match in third place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 3-3-1, 10 pts. On Sunday, New York dropped a 4-1 decision on the road to D.C. United, snapping a four-game unbeaten run. Despite the loss, Thierry Henry continued his excellent goal scoring form, converting a 72nd minute free kick for New York's only goal of the match. It was Henry's eighth of the season, which ties him for the league lead with San Jose Earthquakes forward Chris Wondolowski.

New York hosts a Revolution side that hopes to snap a two-game losing streak. New England's last match was back on April 14, when they fell 2-1 to D.C. United at home. The Revolution, which was idle this past weekend, currently are in eighth place in the East on six points with a 2-4-0 record. New England is in its first year under head coach Jay Heaps, who played for the club from 2001-09.

Saturday's match will be the 56th regular season meeting between the two teams, a matchup dating back to 1996. All-time vs. New England, the Red Bulls are 18-25-12, including a 14-8-7 mark at home. The Revolution is winless in their two regular season visits to Red Bull Arena, most recently losing 2-1 on June 10, 2011. This will be the first of three meetings between the sides during the season. New York will pay two visits to Gillette Stadium, on Sunday, July 8 and Saturday, Sept. 22.

LAST WEEK

Red Bulls 1, D.C. United 4 on Sunday, April 22 at RFK Stadium

THIS WEEK

Red Bulls vs. New England Revolution at Red Bull Arena on Saturday, April 28 at 3:30 PM ET (TV: NBC Sports Network; Radio: WLIB 1190 AM)

NEXT WEEK

Red Bulls at Los Angeles Galaxy at The Home Depot Center on Saturday, May 5 at 8:00 PM ET (TV: ESPN/ESPN Deportes; Radio: WLIB 1190 AM).

RED BULLS UPENDED BY D.C. UNITED, 4-1

The New York Red Bulls had their four-game unbeaten streak snapped Sunday evening, falling 4-1 to D.C. United at RFK Stadium. Forward Thierry Henry went into a first place tie with San Jose's Chris Wondolowski in the MLS Golden Boot race, tallying his eighth goal of the season in the loss.

D.C. took the lead in the eighth minute. United won the ball in midfield and forward Chris Pontius drove towards goal before rifling a long-range rising shot that beat goalkeeper Ryan Meara.

The Red Bulls tried to get back into the encounter and tested Joe Willis in the 25th minute, when Henry took a pass from Kenny Cooper and hit it straight at the United goalkeeper. Six minutes later, Jan Gunnar Solli's cross was controlled in the box by Henry, who swiveled and knocked a deflected right footed attempt just past the right post.

United doubled its advantage in the 32nd minute. Maicon Santos had possession, drove along the endline and fired a heavy pass into the six-yard box. New York's Connor Lade tried to clear it but Pontius pounced onto the loose ball and stroked it home to make the score 2-0. Soon after, Nick DeLeon found the back of the net and furthered D.C.'s advantage, one-timing a Dwayne De Rosario feed off of Red Bulls defender Markus Holgersson and into the bottom left corner of the net. Pontius completed his hat trick in the 69th minute, latching onto a loose ball, dribbling in and putting it under Meara and into the goal.

Henry pulled one back for the visitors in the 72nd minute. After Dax McCarty was fouled from 23-yards-out, Henry stepped up and curled his free kick into the top left corner of the goalmouth. McCarty nearly made the score 4-2, heading a Lade cross high minutes moments later.

Forward Jhonny Arteaga and defender Tyler Ruthven made their MLS debuts Sunday, coming into the game off the bench. Lade, a Red Bulls Academy product, earn his first career League start.

TROPHEE DES CHAMPIONS TO BE PLAYED AT RED BULL ARENA ON JULY 28

The 2012 Trophée des Champions, the French soccer Super Cup, is coming to the United States for the first time ever, pitting the French League 1 winner against the French Cup Champion at Red Bull Arena on Saturday, July 28 at 3 p.m. Tickets will go on sale on Wednesday, April 25 at 10 a.m. exclusively through TDC-NYC.com.

The match is the annual kickoff to the French soccer season, and the fourth consecutive year that the match will be contested outside of France, but the first time the match will be played in a country that is not French speaking.

New York Red Bulls Season Ticket Holders will get an exclusive pre-sale window to secure their seats which will include a 25% discount on tickets.

The match is organized each year by the French Soccer League, the LFP (Ligue de Football Professionnel), who runs the 2 top divisions in France, Ligue 1 and 2. Ligue 1 has 79 broadcasters in the world, and covers more than 150 countries. Among the clubs of Ligue 1 the most famous are Olympique de Marseille, Paris Saint Germain, Olympique Lyonnais and LOSC (Lille).

"We are very proud to organize the 2012 Trophée des Champions in USA, especially here in New-York", said LFP President Frédéric Thiriez. "Soccer becomes bigger and bigger in North America and we expect to promote our championship in USA. I remember last season's game in the city of Tangiers, Morocco. Olympique Marseille has won Trophée des Champions 5-4 against LOSC after a tremendous game. In 2012, I am sure that both clubs will do their best to offer a magic moment in the beautiful Red Bull Arena because Trophée des Champions is not a friendly game : it's the first official match of the season and one of the 4 trophies a club can win in France. Aside the game, we are very proud and confident to have such a great partner as ComCast-Spectator, that will allow us the best promotion and implementation we could dream of".

Comcast-Spectacor, the Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment firm, today announced through a partnership with its subsidiary Front Row Marketing Services, that the company is bringing the 2012 Trophée des Champions to the United States for the first time ever.

"We are very excited to partner with the LFP to bring one of the world's elite professional club championships to the United States for the first time, in a metropolitan area that is one of the most eclectic and sports savvy anywhere," said Comcast-Spectacor President Peter Luukko. "This event will be a great next step as we continue our worldwide expansion in marketing some of the most unique events in sport."

Comcast-Spectacor is a total entertainment provider, offering facility management through its subsidiary Global Spectrum, specializing in food and beverage and catering services through its subsidiary Ovations Food Services, and selling tickets through Paciolan, a ticketing software company, and New Era Tickets, a full-service ticketing division. Comcast-Spectacor also owns the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League.

Front Row Marketing Services will manage and market all the logistics of the event, from ticketing and sponsorship sales to digital and television distribution. There will be a number of special events on the east coast in advance of the event, as well as other fan-friendly marketing activation platforms in and around the stadium, all promoting the partnership and celebrating the first-time event on American soil for an international mix of soccer fans. Television and brand partnerships for the event will be announced in the coming weeks.

"This match by any definition is a prestigious signature event in the European Football season and it displays the opportunity that Front Row Marketing Services and Front Row Analytics can have in the global sports community - We have been building tremendous momentum across many fronts and the LFP's trust in our organization is further evidence of the synergy that we can offer when we integrate the entire Comcast-Spectacor family of companies and talented executives. Finally, the game is also very fortunate to have the tremendous staff and venue of Red Bull Arena" said Front Row Marketing Services President Chris Lencheski.

"It was a logical move for me to introduce Ligue 1 to Comcast Spectacor. Front Row Marketing's capabilities will certainly deliver the results the French League is expecting as they introduce their brand in the United States. This partnership will be a great fit moving forward," said match consultant Joe Fraga.

"We are very excited to host the 2012 Trophée des Champions "" a prestigious match with an illustrious history of fantastic soccer," said New York Red Bulls President, Business Operations Chris Heck. "Red Bull Arena is the top soccer stadium in North America and we are proud to welcome two fantastic French teams to the United States for the first time in the competition's history."

LEADING THE WAY

By notching the Red Bulls' lone goal in their 4-1 defeat at D.C. United on Sunday, Thierry Henry continues his torrid scoring pace and currently is tied for the league lead in goals with Chris Wondolowski of the San Jose Earthquakes. Henry's 72nd minute free kick was his eighth tally of the season, all coming in his last five games. Henry and Wondolowski currently lead Henry's teammate and strike partner Kenny Cooper by just one goal for the league lead.

Henry, who also ranks second in MLS with five assists, has registered either a goal or assist in six of the team's seven games this season.

DEBUTS AND FIRSTS

Red Bulls defender Tyler Ruthven and forward Jhonny Arteaga made their MLS and team debuts on Sunday in the team's 4-1 loss to D.C. United. Ruthven, in his first season with the team after spending last season with NASL side Atlanta Silverbacks, replaced Stephen Keel at halftime. Aretaga, who led FC New York of the USL PRO division in scoring last season, came on in the 81st minute for Dane Richards.

The match also marked the first MLS start for Red Bulls defender Connor Lade, playing 90 minutes. Lade, a four year player at St. John's University and the fifth Red Bulls Academy product to sign for the club, made his professional debut on April 14 against the San Jose Earthquakes, coming off the bench to replace Roy Miller in the 59th minute.

HENRY ON THE RISE

Thierry Henry's strike on Sunday was his 24th career regular season goal as a Red Bull. The tally pushed Henry ahead of Mike Magee and into sixth place on the club's all-time regular season goal scoring list. Since joining the team in the middle of the 2010 season, Henry has 24 goals and 12 assists in 44 regular season matches.

TOP GUNS

The Red Bulls' 17 goals through seven matches puts them atop Major League Soccer in goal scoring so far this season. The team with the next most goals, San Jose, has 13.

HENRY BECOMES FIRST PLAYER TO WIN THREE-STRAIGHT MLS PLAYER OF THE WEEKS

New York Red Bulls forward and captain Thierry Henry won an unprecedented third-straight MLS Player of the Week Award, taking home the honors for Weeks 3 though 5 of the MLS season. Henry, the MLS Player of the Month for March, became the first player in League history to win three consecutive MLS Player of the Week awards. The MLS Player of the Week, which was won last week by Chivas USA's Dan Kennedy, breaking Henry's streak, is selected each week of the regular season by a panel of journalists from the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR).

Henry's most recent accolade came off a two-goal, one-assist performance in New York's 4-1 win over the Columbus Crew at Crew Stadium April 7. The Frenchman helped start the scoring in the third minute, assisting on the team's opening goal when he lofted a pass into the penalty box that fellow strike partner Kenny Cooper turned and finished.

The MLS Golden Boot co-leader tallied his first goal of the match and New York's third in the opening interval in the 40th minute, running onto a Roy Miller pass and slotting it past goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum and inside the right post. Henry recorded his seventh goal in three matches and capped a strong New York performance in the 90th minute, controlling and lashing home a Joel Lindpere cross into the back of the net with his right foot. The 4-1 final scoreline ensured that New York became the first team in League history to win three straight matches by a margin of three goals or more.

RED BULLS-UNION KICKOFF TIME MOVED

The New York Red Bulls announced that the kickoff time for their match on Sunday, May 13 against the Philadelphia Union at PPL Park has been moved to 12:30 PM ET (TV: ESPN 2, ESPN Deportes; Radio: WLIB 1190 AM). The game was originally scheduled for 1:30 PM.

RED BULLS TO HOST TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR ON JULY 31 AT RED BULL ARENA

The New York Red Bulls will face English Premiership club, Tottenham Hotspur, on Tuesday, July 31, at Red Bull Arena as part of the inaugural New York Invitational Cup. Kickoff time and broadcast information will be announced at a later date.

Red Bulls Full Season Ticket Holders will have this match included in their plans as "Event 18" (out of 20). Season Ticket Holders will have access to an exclusive team meet-and-greet, as well as an open practice and autograph session. Fans can purchase tickets for the Tottenham match through an exclusive three-game pack by logging onto www.newyorkredbulls.com or calling 1.877.RBSOCCER.

"Tottenham has been one of the top EPL teams over the past several years and we are thrilled to play host to them at Red Bull Arena," said Chris Heck, New York Red Bulls President, Business Operations. "We are also excited to bring an elite international club as a reward for our season ticket holders and the supporters for both clubs. There will be several exciting events prior to, during and after the match that will have the direct involvement of fans and we are looking forward to revealing more details later this spring."

"We are delighted to have the opportunity to take part in the inaugural New York Invitational Cup. We enjoyed an excellent match against the Red Bulls during our last tour to the US and we expect this game to be equally competitive," said Tottenham Hotspur Chairman Daniel Levy. "In recent years, we have seen a significant rise in the number of Spurs fans across the USA and especially in and around New York and New Jersey. This match presents us with a great opportunity to give something back to those fans and also introduce new supporters to the Spurs way of playing soccer."

Tottenham, also known as Spurs, is currently fourth in the 2011-12 Barclays Premier League standings with 54 points. The London-based club boasts a number of top international players including Welsh midfielder Gareth Bale, Dutch midfielder Rafael Van der Vaart and Croatian midfielder Luka Modric. In addition, former U.S. Men's National Team standout goalkeeper Brad Friedel plays for Spurs.

Tottenham came to Red Bull Arena on July 22, 2010 as part of the New York Football Challenge and won, 2-1, behind goals from Robbie Keane and Bale. New York forward and former Arsenal FC star Thierry Henry made his Red Bulls debut in that match and scored in the first half. The Red Bulls have a 1-1-1 record all-time against English Premier League sides and are 42-26-15 in international play.

RED BULLS ACADEMY UPDATE: Academy goes combined 6-0-0 this weekend: The Red Bulls Academy enjoyed an impressive weekend, winning all six of its contests on Saturday and Sunday. The Red Bulls' Under-18 team won both of its matches, defeating the Boston Bolts and fellow MLS side New England Revolution. On Saturday, the U-18's knocked off the Bolts by a 3-1 score. The Red Bulls opened the scoring two minutes in through Eric Lagg. Ten minutes later, Brandon Allen's converted his chance off a corner kick to double the Red Bulls' lead. Scotty Thomsen, who assisted on the Red Bulls' first two goals, capped off a great day by setting up Mael Corboz for the third goal. The U-18's completed their weekend with a 2-1 victory over the Revolution on Sunday, despite falling behind by a goal early on. The Red Bulls responded with goals from Allen and Danny Bedoya, while the defense held firm against a late rush from the Revolution.

The Red Bulls Under-16 team also knocked off the Boston Bolts and New England Revolution, scoring a 2-1 victory on Saturday over the Bolts and a 5-2 win against the Revs on Sunday. On Saturday, the Red Bulls allowed an early Bolts goal, but came back with goals from Izzy Tandir and Vinny Brunetti. Adam Najem assisted on both goals. On Sunday, the Red Bulls came out on top in a high scoring affair against the Revs. Tandir continued his hot play with two more goals, while Najem provided two more assists while also finding the back of the net himself. Malcolm Dixon and Amando Moreno rounded out the scoring for the Red Bulls.

On Saturday, the Red Bulls Under-15 squad burst out to beat the Boston Bolts by a 5-0 score. Dontae Perez led the way, scoring a hat trick, while James Buonavita and Nate Odusate also found the back of the net. The Under-14 side also had no trouble scoring, as they defeated the Bolts by a 5-1 score on Saturday. The Red Bulls scored four times before the interval on goals by Gideon Metrikin, Anthony Sileo, Malik Stewart and Jonas Halvorsen. Metrikin added another for good measure in the second half s the Red Bulls cruised.

Check out the New York Red Bulls Statistics



Major League Soccer Stories from April 23, 2012


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central