Fort Lauderdale CF fell 4-1 on the road against New England Revolution II. The USL League One matchup at Gillette Stadium kicked off at 7 p.m. ET and aired live on ESPN+.
Fort Lauderdale began the match with six changes to its starting XI from its last game; goalkeeper Andre Zuluaga, fullbacks Sami Guediri and Brian Rosales, midfielders Servando Carrasco and Eduardo Sosa and 15-year-old winger Felipe Valencia returned to the starting lineup.
It was a highly contested first half with few opportunities on the offensive end for both sides. It seemed as if the match was going into the break with a goalless stalemate on the board, but New England opened the scoring in the 42nd minute through a right-footed free-kick by midfielder Nicolas Firmino to take a 1-0 before the halfway mark.
Fort Lauderdale, however, struck back in the opening stages of the second half, tying the match 1-1 in the 52nd minute through a goal by 15-year-old Academy product Valencia. Academy product Edison Azcona delivered an inch-perfect through ball that split the defensive line and found Valencia inside the box, who then calmly finished the play with a left-footed strike to beat the keeper. It was Valencia’s third goal of the season, who is the youngest goalscorer in USL history, and Azcona’s second assist.
New England then quickly recovered to regain their lead a few minutes later in the 60th minute; forward Justin Rennicks found the back of the net with a finish in the near post after receiving a cross from right back Colby Quiñones to give his team a 2-1 lead.
The hosts once again scored to extend their lead in the 75th minute with a goal by left back Ryan Spaulding and in the 93rd minute with a goal by center back Tiago Mendonca. In the end, New England won 4-1.
Fort Lauderdale CF will now return home to face Forward Madison FC at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Oct. 14, at Inter Miami CF Stadium in the team’s second to last regular season match.
