FOXBOROUGH, MA– The New England Revolution (0-0-3, 0pts. in MLS) were held to a draw in the second leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup Round of 16 match after defeating Liga Deportiva Alajuelense (6-3-2, 21 pts. in CRPD) 1-1 on Thursday night.
The match kicked off at 8:00 p.m. ET at Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto in Alajuela, Llano, Costa Rica, to a crowd of 19,000.
The starting XI in 🇨🇷@TheChampions | #ConcaChampions pic.twitter.com/wFaOHwewe2
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) March 14, 2024
The team started their lineup in a 4-3-3 formation with Henrich Ravas starting in net with a backline of (left back) Ryan Spaulding, (center backs) Henry Kessler, and Jonathan Mensah, along with (right back) Andrew Farrell. The midfield spots were manned by Matt Polster (defensive midfield) with Noel Buck (left midfield) and Ian Harkes (right midfield). The forward roles were manned by Esmir Bajraktarević (left wing), Nacho Gil (right wing), and Tomás Chancalay as the lone striker.
Midfielder Carles Gil was unavailable for tonight’s match as he did not travel with the squad to Costa Rica (rest)
📸1️⃣1️⃣@TheChampions | #ConcaChampions pic.twitter.com/G72AsBchNV
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) March 15, 2024
The match kicked off with L.D. Alajuelense starting from the center circle. Forward #5 Carles Borges played the ball backwards to his center backs who decided to launch the ball into the New England defensive third.
In just the 3rd minute, L.D. Alajuelense got on the board early with one of their first chances of the match.
¡Carlos Mora descuenta en le global para Alajuelense! 🔴⚫ pic.twitter.com/JY7TqEEXgf
— Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) March 15, 2024
An elevated ball to the back post found #8 Johan Venegas, who headed the ball across to #5 Carles Borges. His initial shot was blocked, but the rebound fell right into the lap of #17 Carlos Mora, who was unmarked at the back post for the easy finish.
L.D. Alajuelense had yet another chance to score in the 21st minute when a tight angle shot by #8 Johan Vanegas struck the right post.
New England’s first chance came in the 22nd minute when Ryan Spaulding attempted to round the keeper and it was met with a great last-ditch effort by goalkeeper #23 Leonel Moreira.
Alajuelense had yet another chance in the 33rd minute when #23 Kevin Cabezas had an open shot in midfield that was met with a routine save by Henrich Ravas.
After the 45+2 minutes, the match entered halftime with Alajuelense ahead 1-0.
Score at the half. @TheChampions | #ConcaChampions pic.twitter.com/saI5vI54J5
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) March 15, 2024
Entering the second half, Revolution head coach Caleb Porter made his first change of the match by substituting defender Henry Kessler and replacing him with defender Dave Romney.
The second half began with New England starting from the center circle. Forward Tomás Chancalay elected to play the ball backward to midfielder Matt Polster, who elected to launch the ball into Alajuelense’s defensive third.
Alajuelense had the first chance of the second half when #5 Carles Borges’ freekick went just over the New England crossbar.
In the 55th minute, New England had a great opportunity where Ryan Spaulding caught the goalkeeper cheating and almost scored to level the match.
Leveled the 80’ 🫡 pic.twitter.com/4tLH6erBgZ
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) March 15, 2024
Following the effort by Spaulding, L.D Alajuelense head coach Alexandre Guimaraes made his first three changes of the match by replacing midfielder #11 Diego Campos and defenders #4 Guillermo Villalobos and #27 Ian Lawrence with forward #9 Jonathan Moya and defenders #16 Yael Lopez and #24 Suhander Zuniga.
In the 57th minute, Revolution head coach Caleb Porter made his second and third change of the match by replacing midfielder Noel Buck and forward Tomás Chancalay and replaced them with midfielder Mark-Anthony Kaye and forward Giacomo Vrioni.
In the 67th minute, L.D Alajuelense head coach Alexandre Guimaraes made his fourth change of the match by replacing midfielder #8 Johan Vanegas and replacing him with forward #7 Anthony Hernandez.
Alajuelense had a great opportunity to score in the 70th minute when #9 Jonathan Moya’s close-range shot went just wide of the post.
Entering the 80th minute, New England leveled the match.
What a strike from Giacomo! 😍🔥
🎥: @TheChampions pic.twitter.com/H3gSUEnRQK
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) March 15, 2024
Midfielder Esmir Bajraktarevic managed a chip through ball to Giacomo Vrioni. He took two touches before unleashing a left-footed strike that struck the crossbar, down, and into the net for the goal.
In the 83rd minute, L.D Alajuelense head coach Alexandre Guimaraes made his final change of the match by replacing midfielder #12 Joel Campbell with midfielder #10 Aaron Suarez.
In the 84th minute, Revolution head coach Caleb Porter made his fourth and fifth change of the match by replacing midfielder Matt Polster and Esmir Bajraktarevic with midfielder Tommy McNamara and Emmanuel Boateng.
After the 90+2 minutes, the match ended with the scoreline at 1-1.
WE MOVE! pic.twitter.com/gjgmuEDZPU
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) March 15, 2024
With the result, the New England Revolution have advanced to the quarterfinals of the Concacaf Champions Cup after defeating L.D. Alajuelense 5-1 on aggregate.
They will face 7x Concacaf Champions Cup winners, Club América.
SECURED. @TheChampions | #ConcaChampions pic.twitter.com/YZ1RjZo2GH
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) March 15, 2024
The Winner of the quarterfinal matchup will face the winner of 5x Concacaf Champions Cup winners, C.F. Pachuca (Mexico) versus 0x Concacaf Champions Cup Winners, C.S. Herediano (Costa Rica) in the semifinals.
For MLS play, the New England Revolution (0-0-3, 0pts.) return home to Foxboro, MA as they are set to face MLS Eastern Conference side FC Cincinatti (1-2-0, 5 pts.) on Sunday, March 17th. The match kicks off in Gillette Stadium at 2:00 p.m. ET on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app.
