Second-half substitute Taylor Twellman -- who was making his 2008 debut after returning from injury -- scored the game-winning goal in the 59th minute to lead the New England Revolution to a 2-1 victory over Chivas USA at The Home Depot Center on Sunday afternoon.
The win was the Revolution's first-ever on the road at Chivas USA, as the club had previously been 0-2-1 on three trips to face the Goats on the west coast.
New England began the match in an unconventional 3-6-1 formation, using Steve Ralston and Mauricio Castro as attacking midfielders behind the lone forward, Kenny Mansally.
Chivas USA nearly opened the scoring in the 10th minute, as Ante Razov's cross from the left wing found Jesse Marsch open near the penalty spot. However, Revs defender Jay Heaps was well-positioned to block March's side volley attempt and send the ball out for a corner kick.
Eight minutes later, it was New England which scored the game's first goal, as Mansally gave the Revolution the lead with his second goal of the season. Defensive midfielder Jeff Larentowicz sent a long ball over the top of the Goats' defense, putting Mansally in alone on Chivas USA goalkeeper Brad Guzan. The 19-year-old Gambian used his first touch to place a left-footed shot just inside the far post and put New England up, 1-0, in the 18th minute.
The visitors came close to extending their lead in the 43rd minute, but Castro's right-footed shot from 20 yards out was tipped over the bar by Guzan.
Twellman replaced Mansally at the start of the second half, while Kheli Dube took the place of Castro in the 54th minute, joining Twellman up top as New England switched to a 3-5-2 formation.
The change paid off just minutes later, as Twellman scored his first goal of the season in the 59th minute to give the Revs a 2-0 lead. A one-two combination with Ralston sent Twellman in behind the Chivas USA defense, and the United States international sent a left-footed shot back across his body and past Guzan.
Twellman had an opportunity to score his second goal and push New England's advantage to three midway through the second half, but his far post header from a Wells Thompson cross was sent over the crossbar.
Chivas USA defender Shavar Thomas head a great chance to pull a goal back for the home team in the 83rd minute, but he sent his header wide of the right post.
Twellman again almost scored a third goal for the Revolution in the 86th minute, as Thompson's ball over the top of the defense gave Twellman an open shot in the right side of the box, but his strike skimmed wide of the far post.
The Goats cut the deficit in half deep into stoppage time, as Maykel Galindo rounded Revs goalkeeper Matt Reis and centered a pass to Justin Braun, who finished past a trio of backtracking New England defenders. However, the final whistle was blown just seconds after the restart, as the Revs held on for their third road victory of the season.
Reis finished with no saves, as Chivas USA scored on its lone shot on goal of the game, while Guzan made three stops.
The Revs will return home for their next match on Saturday, May 17, when, for the first time since 2005, they will host the expansion San Jose Earthquakes at 7:30 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium.
New England Revolution at Chivas USA May 11, 2008 - Carson, Calif. (The Home Depot Center)
Scoring Summary
NE - Kenny Mansally (Jeff Larentowicz, Chris Albright) 18
NE - Taylor Twellman (Steve Ralston) 59
CHV - Justin Braun (Maykel Galindo, Atiba Harris) 93+
New England Revolution: Matt Reis (GK), Jay Heaps, Michael Parkhurst, Chris Albright, Khano Smith, Shalrie Joseph, Jeff Larentowicz, Wells Thompson, Mauricio Castro (Kheli Dube 55), Steve Ralston © (Gary Flood 79), Kenny Mansally (Taylor Twellman 46)
Substitutes Not Used: Doug Warren (GK), Amaechi Igwe, Adam Cristman, Chase Hilgenbrinck
STATS: Shots 7; Shots on Goal 5; Saves 0; Corner Kicks 3; Offsides 1; Fouls Committed 11
Chivas USA: Brad Guzan (GK), Bobby Burling, Jim Curtin, Shavar Thomas, Eric Ebert (Justin Braun 59), Francisco Mendoza, Jesse Marsch (Daniel Paladini 68), Paolo Nagamura, Sacha Kljestan, Ante Razov (Atiba Harris 71), Maykel Galindo
Substitutes Not Used: Dan Kennedy (GK), Keith Savage, Anthony Hamilton, Gerson Mayen
STATS: Shots 10; Shots on Goal 1; Saves 3; Corner Kicks 4; Offsides 3; Fouls Committed 24
Misconduct Summary:
CHV - Jesse Marsch (caution) 19
NE - Jeff Larentowicz (caution) 30
CHV - Atiba Harris (caution) 75
CHV - Daniel Paladini (caution) 76
Referee: Mark Geiger
Referee's Assistants: Anthony Vasoli (SAR), David Bragg (JAR)
Fourth Official: Kevin Stott
Time of Game: 1:53
Weather: Cloudy, 64 degrees
Attendance: 10,927
NOTES
• The Revolution's all-time leading goalscorer, Taylor Twellman, made his 2008 debut, entering the match at halftime for Kenny Mansally ... Twellman was initially slated as a starter for the season opener against Houston on March 29, but he was removed from the lineup after experiencing discomfort in his right knee during warm-ups ... he underwent successful surgery to repair a torn medial meniscus in his right knee on April 2, and returned just ahead of the expected 6-8 week recovery period.
• Twellman scored his first goal of the season just 14 minutes after entering the match, marking the fourth straight match in which he's appeared that he has scored ... to end last season, he scored in the second leg of the Eastern Conference Semifinal Series against New York (Nov. 3), the Eastern Conference Final against Chicago (Nov. 8) and in MLS Cup against Houston (Nov. 18).
• Twellman, who is fifth on the MLS career goalscoring list, scored his 92nd career goal ... the goal was also his 27th career game-winning goal, placing him fourth on the all-time list.
• Steve Ralston made history in the 16th minute, becoming the first player in MLS history to reach the 30,000-minutes-played mark ... the midfielder owns five MLS career records, tying him with Chivas USA's Ante Razov for the most MLS career records for any player ... he is the league's career leader in minutes (30,063), games (340), starts (337), assists (122) and game-winning assists (34).
• Midfielder Steve Ralston started in an attacking midfield role, marking his first start since the season opener against Houston on March 29 ... Ralston dislocated his left shoulder in the 64th minute of the season opener, forcing him to miss five games (April 3 - April 24) ... he appeared as a substitute in the Revolution's last match against Chicago (May 3), entering the game in the 54th minute.
• Steve Ralston's assist on Taylor Twellman's goal was his 34th career game-winning assist, giving him sole possession of first place on MLS' all-time list ... he had been tied with former Tampa Bay Mutiny teammate Carlos Valderrama.
• Kenny Mansally's goal was his first since scoring the Revs' third goal in the 3-1 win at Kansas City on April 9 ... the goal was his second of the season and the second of his MLS career.
• Chris Albright's assist on Kenny Mansally's goal was his first with the Revolution ... it was Albright's third career assist against Chivas USA, as he recorded two assists against the Goats with the L.A. Galaxy.
• The win marked the Revolution's first-ever road win at Chivas USA ... it also marked the first time that the Revolution scored more than one goal at Chivas USA ... previously, the Revs had lost 1-0 (July 22, 2005), tied 1-1 (Aug. 6, 2006) and lost 2-0 (June 30, 2007) in road matches against the Goats.
• New England is now 3-1-1 on the road this season ... the club is one of just two teams in the league with a winning record on the road (along with Chicago) ... the two clubs are also the only two teams in the league with three road wins.
