January 25, 2010 ALL TIED UP (UPDATED) Bulls, CSKA Moscow in 1-1 draw
Dane Richards, who scored the Red Bulls' lone goal, battles CSKA player for the ball. Ernesto Motta photo courtesy of the Red Bulls
ALICANTE, Spain -- The Red Bulls and CSKA Moscow played to a 1-1 draw in their international friendly at Campoamour Resort Monday afternoon.
It was the first game under new coach Hans Backe.
Midfielder Dane Richards scored the first goal of the 2010 season six minutes into the match when he took control of a misplayed ball by the CSKA backline and sprinted in alone and beat goalkeeper Chepchugov with a low shot to the left side. Captain and forward Juan Pablo Angel took a pass from rookie midfielder Austin da Luz and turned and fired a diagonal ball from 30 yards out at the CSKA defense that was controlled by Stoliarenko, but his back pass was intercepted by Richards.
“It was a good game for us,” Backe said. “They are a real high profile team. I am very happy with our performance and our defending. Overall, it was a good match. We’ve only practiced for 8-10 sessions. Our defense was excellent. You have to be good defending to survive.”
Angel was encouraged as well.
“It’s the beginning of the exercises we’re doing here,” he said. “It was nice to get a match against a good side. (Hans) had been focusing mainly on the shape of the team. I think we did an excellent job. The things that he told us to do, I think we did exceptionally well. There is still work to be done. But, overall I am pleased with our performance and the shape of the team.”
The Red Bulls had a number of other chances in the opening 45 minutes, including two corner kick opportunities in the 17th and 18th minutes and a Conor Chinn tally that was ruled offsides.
The Red Bulls made six substitutions to start the second half. CSKA came out quickly pressuring the Red Bulls back line and finally put one through when Zabolotniy sent in a left side cross that Tomas Necid handled and fired at trialist goalkeeper Bill Gaudette. Gaudette made the save on the shot from just two yards out, but Necid cleaned up the rebound to level the match at 1-1 in the 49th minute.
Richards, who was subbed back in the 67th minute for Angel, had a chance to give New York the victory with five minutes remaining when he split the midfield and sent a pass wide left to Jeremy Hall. Hall gathered the ball and sent it back to Richards in the middle. But, Richards’ shot sailed over the crossbar from inside the area.
CSKA pressured New York in the second half, sending a number of shots in, but Gaudette was up to the task as the match finished in a draw.
This season CSKA qualified for the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League, where they will face Spain’s Sevilla in a two-leg, home-and-home series starting on Feb. 24.
The Red Bulls play Poland’s Lech Poznan on Wednesday and Norway’s Stromsgodset on Monday, Feb. 1. They are scheduled to train in Spain through Feb. 4.
Lech Poznan qualified for the UEFA Europa League but it was knocked out by Belgium’s Club Brugge in qualifying rounds on penalty kicks after the teams were tied 1-1 on aggregate. Stromsgodset, a Norwegian Premier League team based in Drammen, are 12th in the league with 36 points.
Game summary
RBNY: Dane Richards 1, 6’
CSKA: Tomas Necid 49’
Disciplinary Summary:
None
New York Red Bulls: Danny Cepero (Bill Gaudette 46’), Danleigh Borman, Tim Ream, Mike Petke (Andrew Boyens 46’), Fredrik Jonsson (Carlos Johnson 46’), Austin da Luz (Jeremy Hall, 46’), Ernst Oebster (Walter Garcia 46’), Sinisa Ubiparipovic, Dane Richards (Irving Garcia 46’), Conor Chinn, Juan Pablo Angel (Dane Richards 67’).
CSKA Moscow: Chepchugov (Nigmatullin, 46), Berezutski A. Nababkin, Semberas, Mamaev, (Aldonin, 46), Rahimic, Sekou, Dzalamidze, (Zabolotny , 46), Stoliarenko, Guilherme (Necid, 46), Ryzhov
