Moments from booking their ticket to the 2013 North American Soccer League Soccer Bowl, the New York Cosmos had to settle for a 1-1 draw with FC Edmonton in the team’s home finale at Hofstra’s Shuart Stadium on Oct. 20.
Alessandro Noselli came off the bench to score for a second consecutive game and gave the Cosmos a 1-0 lead in the 78th minute, but FC Edmonton’s David Proctor equalized in the 90th minute. The defender headed in a corner from Lance Laing at the edge of the 6-yard box to snap the Cosmos’ five-game winning streak.
“Of course we’re disappointed, 1-0 winning at home in the 89th minute you expect to win the game,” Cosmos captain Carlos Mendes said. “We’re disappointed, but we’re still in control and obviously we win these next two games, we’ll be playing in Atlanta.”
The Cosmos dominated possession in the first half and pressured Edmonton from the opening kickoff with Paulo Mendes taking a pass from Stefan Dimitrov and firing a left-footed shot from the top of the 18-yard box just over the crossbar in the first minute.
In the 16th minute, Paulo Mendes played a great ball to Danny Szetela, whose chip from the edge of the 6-yard box went just over the crossbar.
Marcos Senna unleashed a blast from 30 yards out in the 29th minute that Edmonton goalkeeper Lance Parker parried over the crossbar for a Cosmos corner kick.
Noselli made a difference as soon as he stepped on the pitch for Paulo Mendes in the 61st minute, putting a low shot just wide to Edmonton goalkeeper Lance Parker’s right.
Two minutes later, Noselli was on the end of a nice combination that started with a pass from Senna to Szetela, but the Italian’s sliding attempt from just inside the 6-yard box was stopped by Parker.
Noselli put the ball over the crossbar in the 68th minute following a quick free kick and did it again two minutes later after an acrobatic bicycle kick missed the top right corner, but he finally found the net after taking a pass from Stefan Dimitrov to score his third goal of the year.
“For the second time I say thanks to Dimi because he gave me a great ball. Only thing [I could do] was shoot in the net,” Noselli said. “I’m happy for the goal, but it’s not a good day for me because after the goal we thought the championship was ours. But in the soccer, it happens.”
The draw may have earned the Cosmos one point, but it was not the result head coach Giovanni Savarese wanted.
“It feels like we didn’t accomplish our target tonight, definitely because we expected at the end to be able to get a win,” Savarese said. “They tied three minutes from the end, if you consider stoppage time as well. I wouldn’t consider it a loss, but definitely it was not the result we were looking for.”
The Cosmos, who extended their unbeaten streak to nine games, will have a second attempt at clinching next week when they head to San Antonio, Oct. 26 at 8:30 p.m.
