The New England Revolution earned their first win of the Leagues Cup 2024 with a 1-0 victory over Mazatlán at Gillette Stadium, thanks to a goal by Jack Panayotou. With the win, the Revs are currently in first place in group East 5.
The beginning of the match showed the difficult moment both teams are going through in their respective leagues and there was little excitement in both ends. Mazatlán gradually began to dominate the action, although without much trouble for Slovenian goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic.
New England improved in the latter part of the first half, but their long-range attempts from Ian Harkes and young Esmir Bajraktarevic were not enough to beat goalkeeper Hugo González.
Thomas McNamara had the clearest chance of the first 45 minutes for the home team, but his header from the penalty spot went wide of the right side of the goal.
Although the Mexican team was playing better in the second half, midfielder Jack Panayotou opened the scoreboard in the 69th minute when he took advantage of a cross from the left side that Gonzalez could not stop, pushing the ball into the net. It was the first goal of his career.
The team coached by Víctor Manuel Vucetich tried to equalize with several attempts at the opponent's area, however, the New England defense did not allow them to come close to their goal.The Cañoneros will play their second match of the tournament on July 31, when they take on Nashville SC at Geodis Park. The Revs will return to action on Aug. 6 to play the Boys in Gold at Gillette Stadium.
