HARRISON, N.J. – Fresh off their takedown of the LA Galaxy, Chivas USA picked up a valuable point on the road on Wednesday night with a thrilling 1-1 draw against the Eastern Conference-leading New York Red Bulls.
Juan Pablo Ángel scored the opener early in the second half in his return to Red Bull Arena, but Kenny Cooper continued his torrid scoring streak by knocking in the equalizer shortly after.
The draw saw Chivas USA move to 4-6-2 on the season, and extended their unbeaten streak to three games. It also marked the first time the 8-3-3 Red Bulls failed to win a game since April 22, a stretch of five matches.
The match began with both teams doing most of the battling in the midfield, and aside from a shot from distance early on from Chivas USA midfielder Nick LaBrocca, neither goalkeeper had much to do early.
Things picked up as the half wore on, and each side had some decent looks on goal but could not convert. The Red Bulls’ best chance came when defender Roy Miller hit a shot wide from a tight angle after some individual brilliance down the flank allowed him to break in on goal, while Chivas forward Ángel drilled a shot off the left post in the 25th minute.
But the former Red Bulls star didn’t make any mistake with his next chance. Following an early corner kick two minutes out of halftime, Rauwshan McKenzie headed the ball to Ángel and the Colombian buried a spectacular side volley past Ryan Meara and into the back of the net.
The Red Bulls responded quickly, scoring the equalizer in the 56th minute when Cooper knocked in his 11th goal of the season off excellent buildup. Right back Brandon Barklage unleashed a beautiful through-ball down the right touchline that found a streaking Dane Richards. The Jamaican international then unleashed a precise low cross that found Cooper wide open in front of the net for the easy finish past Dan Kennedy.
The goal was Cooper's fourth in as many games and pulled him even with San Jose Earthquakes forward Chris Wondolowski for the league lead.
The hosts piled on most of the pressure from there as they searched for a winner, and they came close on a couple of instances. Chivas USA held on, however, and escaped Red Bull Arena with a big point.
The Red Bulls will now take a break from league play before returning to the field to take on the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park on June 17. Chivas USA, meanwhile, will host the Seattle Sounders at The Home Depot Center on Saturday prior to the international break.
