In arguably the most entertaining game this season in the MLS, the Red Bulls managed to pull out a 3-3 draw in Portland on Sunday night. In a game that had plenty of goals, a red card, penalties and more, Dwayne De Rosario, Austin Da Luz and Thierry Henry all played vital roles for the Red Bulls.
After Luke Rodgers missed the trip across the country with a foot injury, De Rosario and Henry formed a dynamic partnership up top. This meant the midfield and the back four went unchanged from the Red Bulls last outing as Tainio and Lindpere played centrally in the midfield with Da Luz and Ballouchy out wide. In the back the shaky pairing of Keel and Mendes played in the center, with Miller and Solli out wide. Sutton started again in goal.
The Red Bulls got off to a dream start after Da Luz scored a well taken goal in the fifth minute involving De Rosario and Henry, who troubled the Timbers defense for the entire game. The goal marked Da Luz’s first ever MLS goal and is nothing less than he deserves. Since he has filled in for the missing Gold Cup players he has done well and seemed comfortable with the pace of the game. While he may lose his starting spot with the return of Dane Richards and an injury-free Luke Rodgers, he has proven that he can contribute to the team and I think he will continue to play a role as the season progresses.
A relatively uneventful first half saw the Red Bulls go into the break protecting their 1-0 lead. However the game would immediately spring to life in the second half. In recent games the Red Bulls have tended to take the foot off the pedal somewhat after getting the lead. They were punished for this with the 1-1 draw against Columbus and were almost punished last week against the Revs. This time around though, the Red Bulls were again made to pay. Within five minutes of the second half the Red Bulls found themselves trailing 2-1 after a Jack Jewsbury strike from just inside the box and a trademark Timbers set piece that found the back of the net off of quality service by Jewsbury. Things would only get worse for the Red Bulls as a Stephen Keel own goal in the 68th minute gave the Timbers a 3-1 lead and looked to have secured the three points. Keel can’t have too much blame for the actual own goal, but the high line the Red Bulls were holding without sufficient pressure to the ball allowed Perlaza, who clearly has more pace than Keel, to be isolated 1v1 with Keel. After the ball was played over the top, Perlaza was always going to win the foot race against Keel and he made him and the Red Bulls pay.
However, a quick response from the Red Bulls ensured it would be a fight until the final whistle as Henry netted a very nice goal just five minutes later in the 73rd minute. After playing consecutive give and go’s, first with Lindpere and then with Da Luz, Henry collected the ball just inside the box on the left side and beat Perkins in the Timbers goal. It was a quality goal from Henry who was really been finding his form lately and demonstrating that despite his age, he still has the ability that allowed him to be arguably the best true forward in the game in the past ten years. Henry has been particularly impressive as a leader with his own actions. Rather than complaining and not putting a strong effort in, Henry has answered some of his critics from earlier on in the season to show that he is committed to the team and winning. Despite the form of Rodgers, Henry has been the best player for the Red Bulls of late, stepping up to help to the team when it has been most needed of late with so many regular starters away for the Gold Cup.
The match seemed all but over as stoppage time approached with the score still locked at 3-2 in favor of the Timbers. Before the very late equalizing goal though, there was so inexplicable refereeing as Henry received a red card in the third minute of stoppage time for “violent conduct”. After he got caught up in a tussle with Moffat of Portland, the referee issued a red card to Henry and only a yellow to Moffat. The small fight, if you can call it that, did not appear to be big deal in the first place and to send Henry off without the same punishment for Moffat adds to list of very questionable refereeing decisions we have seen throughout this year. As announced earlier through a harsh statement from Red Bulls GM Erik Soler, the Red Bulls plan to appeal the decision on Henry. Luckily the card came so late in the game that it did not have a tremendous impact. After the curious decision from the referee though, the game continued with some late dramatics. De Rosario nailed a well hit penalty kick in the fifth minute of added time to ensure that the Red Bulls steal a point from the match and continue their unbeaten run. It was the right decision by the referee after a hand ball in the box by Rodney Wallace prevented a cross.
Overall its hard to complain with a point, especially in the manner in which the game played out. The Red Bulls would have probably accepted a point before kickoff so it was certainly not a hugely disappointing result. The Red Bulls continue their four game road trip as they face another tough test on Thursday night in Seattle, where they are scheduled to kick off against the Sounders at 10 p.m. Eastern Time.
(image courtesy of Getty Images)
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