Red Bulls Tie FC Dallas 2-2 at Red Bull Arena Where Temperature was 100 Degrees Saturday

Photo Credit Star-Ledger

The announced temperature in Red Bull Arena Saturday night was 100 degrees and we were looking forward to victory in the steam bath. The Red Bulls controlled the ball and created scoring scoring chances in the first half and finally broke through late. Dane Richards took the ball, flew down the right side then fed it to Juan Agudelo who chipped it into the left corner of the net over the head of goalkeeper Kevin Hartman. The Red Bulls took the 1-0 lead into the locker room at half time but could have been up 2-0 or 3-0 easily. FC Dallas flopped all over the field in embarrassing fashion and drew three yellow cards from the Red Bulls along with a red card that was issued to Dane Richards in the 80th minute. Richards was carded for the second time in the 80th minute and was sent off. FC Dallas took the lead on two goals scored by Marvin Chavez in the 51st and 78th minutes. Red Bulls' keeper Frank Rost was not to blame. Although Rafa Marquez made his return to the pitch for RBNY the defense broke down on the two goals scored against them. Thierry Henry missed on a golden opportunity to score earlier in the game but did not lose his second chance in the 85th minute. TH14 scored a monster goal where he split two defenders along the left side of the box, took the ball from his right to his left foot and volleyed it into the net for the 2-2 equalizer. It was a thing of beauty and I was glad my Wife, friends and I were there to see it. The Red Bulls will now travel the Atlantic to participate in the Emirates Cup where they will play Paris Saint-Germain on Saturday and Arsenal on Sunday. The latter game marks the return of Thierry Henry to his old club Arsenal where he's their all-time goal scoring leader. Mehdi Ballouchy continues to not impress and I have to wonder how much longer he'll start for RBNY. He was subbed off very late for Chris Albright who's returning from surgery. I'd rather see him start over Ballouchy, but we will see. The Red Bulls remain in 2nd place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 6-5-12 for 30 points. They must make the most of the remaining 11 games meaning winning, not drawing.