Coney Island

Cosmos drop points in final minutes of 2-2 draw

August 28, 2017 By Scott Enman Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Andres Flores (left) scored his second goal of the season on Saturday against North Carolina FC. Flores received a scoop pass from Ayoze and hit the ball into the far corner of the net. Photos courtesy of North Carolina FC
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After an inspiring win in the first game of the Fall Season against the Spring Season Champion Miami FC, the New York Cosmos have dropped points in four consecutive games, securing three out of a possible 12.

On Saturday, the Cosmos looked as though they might escape with a win, but North Carolina FC scored a goal in stoppage time to tie the game 2-2.

“It was an exciting game for the fans to see,” said Cosmos head coach and Sporting Director Giovanni Savarese after the game at Sahlen’s Stadium. “We did some good things in the second half, but I think the tie is probably the right result for what we saw on the field.”

He added, “We deserved this point, no more than this. We travel to get wins, and we should have been better than what we showed today.”

The fifth-year Venezuelan gaffer had reason to be displeased: The Cosmos were outplayed for much of the match and did not earn their first shot on goal until the 57th minute.

But despite going down early in the match, New York fought back twice.

Jimmy Maurer was fantastic throughout the game, bailing the Cosmos out on several occasions.

It, therefore, came as no surprise that the Cosmos’ first brace started with Maurer.

After making a save, Maurer provided a quick outlet to start a counterattack. The Cosmos transitioned the ball down the length of the pitch, until Ayoze collected the ball at the top of the 18-yard-box.

The Spaniard skillfully scooped the ball over a defender to Andres Flores, who took the ball down with a touch and fired it to the far post past a charging goalkeeper in the 59th minute.  

Just 12 minutes later, Eugene Starikov put the Cosmos up 2-1.

After initially losing the ball, Starikov showed determination to strip the ball from a defender.  The Ukrainian turned and slotted the ball into the back of the net for his first goal of the season.

It took Starikov more than 30 shots to score this year, but his first goal could not have come at a more clutch time.

Although he does not start often, Starikov has been a consistent spark off the bench for Savarese’s team.

Just as it seemed the Cosmos would escape with three points, North Carolina FC scored in stoppage time to split the spoils.

Maurer made an initial save, but rather than pushing the ball away from the mouth of the goal, left it sitting in the six-yard box for an easy tap-in for Renan Gorne.

Despite dropping points in the final moments of the match, there were some positives.  

One encouraging sign for the Cosmos was that the team broke a Modern Era club record by scoring in 10 consecutive road games.

Another positive was that Carlos Mendes returned from injury and was named in the starting 11.

A questionable decision from Savarese, however, was leaving Dejan Jakovic out of the lineup after he earned Man of the Match and North American Soccer League Team of the Week honors for his performance the weekend before. He was available as a substitute, but he did not make an appearance.

While the circumstances are not yet dire, New York will need to turn their form around fast if they want to make the playoffs.

With the tie, the Cosmos remained in fifth place, six points behind first-place Miami FC.

In the combined standings, the Cosmos remained in third.

If the season were to end today, the Cosmos would earn a birth to the playoffs, but there are several teams nipping at their heels, including Jacksonville, a team New York will host on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

A win for New York will be crucial to create some separation between the two teams.


Extra Time:

The Cardiac Cosmos — a nickname given to the team for their gut-wrenching performances and tendency to grind out games — have scored five goals after the 75th minute this year, which is the most in NASL.

 

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