Dániel Gazdag's First Revs Goal Arrives in Stoppage Time as Revolution Edge NYCFC 2-1

For most of the night at Citi Field, New York City FC did everything except the thing that matters most. They hogged the ball, piled up corners and shot from every postcode in Queens. Then, three minutes into stoppage time, a man who had been a New England Revolution player for roughly a week settled the argument.

Dániel Gazdag's low finish deep in added time gave the Revolution a 2-1 win over NYCFC on Wednesday night, a classic smash-and-grab that looked destined to end like the 1-1 draw these clubs played at Gillette Stadium on Aug. 23. According to the Revs' official site, it was Gazdag's first goal for the club, in just his second appearance for New England.

Carles Gil Gets His Penalty Do-Over

New England's opener came from the same place it nearly came from last time. In the 10th minute, moments after the Revs won a corner, Aiden O'Neill was penalized for a handball in the area, and Carles Gil stepped up against Matt Freese, the keeper who had saved his penalty in the August meeting. No sequel this time. Gil slotted a left-footed finish into the bottom right corner in the 12th minute, and per the Revolution, the goal moved him into a tie for fifth in MLS history with 23 career goals from the spot.

The rest of the half belonged to the hosts, at least on the possession chart. Bénie Traoré met a Kevin O'Toole cross in the 15th minute but put his effort straight at Matt Turner. NYCFC kept circling, with Nicolás Fernández Mercau blocked from distance in the 40th, Mitja Ilenic launching one high and wide two minutes later and Traoré skying another right before the break.

New England, meanwhile, was patching holes on the fly. Alhassan Yusuf was booked in the 18th minute and left injured a minute later, with Jackson Yueill taking his place. Matt Polster went into the book in the 31st, his third foul of the half. Still, the Revs carried a 1-0 lead into the locker room.

Luighi Finally Breaks Through

The second half opened the same way, with Ilenic forcing a save from Turner in the 52nd minute. Then the Revs threw a flurry of their own. In the 59th minute Will Sands was blocked, Yueill's header from the six-yard box was saved by Freese and a Dor Turgeman shot was blocked as well. Polster dragged a drive just wide a minute later, and Freese turned away Jack Harrison in the 62nd.

NYCFC, led on the touchline by assistant coach Mehdi Ballouchy, went to the bench in the 63rd minute, sending on Hannes Wolf and Luighi for O'Neill and Agustín Ojeda. Turner kept swatting things away, stopping Andrés Perea from distance and then a Fernández Mercau drive in the 68th. But in the 71st minute Fernández Mercau won a loose ball and squared it, and Luighi, eight minutes after coming on, poked it home from point-blank range. 1-1, and Citi Field finally exhaled.

The Turning Point: A VAR Fake-Out, Then the Real Thing

Marko Mitrović answered almost immediately, sending on Ilay Feingold for Polster and Gazdag for Turgeman in the 72nd minute. It looked like a masterstroke in the 85th, when Gazdag put the ball in the net, only for a VAR review to rule him offside.

New England did not. Deep into the four minutes of added time, Yueill's header from a Feingold cross was blocked and Freese smothered Gazdag's close-range effort. One minute later, Feingold whipped in another cross, Gazdag gathered it in the center of the box and drilled a right-footed shot into the bottom right corner. NYCFC had one last swing in the sixth minute of stoppage time, but Turner saved Luighi's shot from a tight angle and Malachi Jones pulled an effort wide. That was the ballgame.

Who Delivered

Dániel Gazdag had played only about 30 total minutes for New England before he scored the winner, per the club. On Wednesday he took two shots, put both on target, had one goal chalked off and still walked away the hero. That is a strong first week at the office.

"I've been with the team for only like a week or eight days, not a long time, but I can already tell that it's a special group, and they believe that we can have a special season," Gazdag told the Revs' site.

Matt Turner made six saves, and the only shot that beat him came from point-blank range. On a night when his team saw barely a third of the ball, Turner was the reason the Revs were still standing when Gazdag arrived.

Nicolás Fernández Mercau was NYCFC's best player and it was not close. He took three shots, assisted Luighi's equalizer and seemed to be involved in every dangerous move the hosts built.

Ilay Feingold came off the bench in the 72nd minute and still produced the cross that decided the match.

Stats That Matter

• Possession: NYCFC held 65.4 percent of the ball and completed 535 passes to New England's 252.
• Shots: NYCFC outshot the Revs 18 to 11, yet both teams finished with six on target.
• Corners and crosses: NYCFC won 12 corners to 4 and attempted 29 crosses, completing only four.
• Saves: Turner made six, Freese four.
• Defending: New England won 13 tackles to NYCFC's 6 and made 32 clearances to 22.

What It Means

The Revolution move to 12-4-8 with 40 points, and their official site says the win lifted them to third in the Eastern Conference, with Chicago Fire FC one point back. It also stopped any wobble after Saturday's 2-1 loss at LA Galaxy and made it three wins in their last five league matches. Next up is a trip to Chicago on Sunday before the Revs return to Gillette Stadium on Sept. 19 for the first time in almost a month.

NYCFC slide to 7-8-9 with 29 points. They arrived on a run of three straight draws, starting with that 1-1 in New England, and have now gone six league matches without a win, the last one coming against Chicago on July 25. A trip to Real Salt Lake on Saturday is next.

Closing Take

NYCFC spent most of the night playing like the main character. New England just waited for the post-credits scene. Some teams need the ball to win. These Revs apparently need only belief, a fresh signing and one good cross.

"I know this group will never put a head down, no matter what the circumstance on the field. They just keep going," Mitrović said. On Wednesday, they kept going right into stoppage time.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quotes and club notes as reported by revolutionsoccer.net; lineup notes from newyorkcityfc.com.