Super Eagles midfielder Alhassan Yusuf played the full 90 minutes as New England Revolution suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat away to Charlotte FC, Soccernet.ng reports.
Idan Toklomati scored the only goal of the match in the 16th minute and while they were reduced to 10 men in the second half following David Schnegg’s red card, Charlotte held on to claim back-to-back victories.
The defeat denied New England Revolution the chance to move back up to second place in the Eastern Conference standings, leaving them in fourth place.
Charlotte vs New England Revolution: What happened?
Charlotte headed into the encounter on the back of a 2-1 victory over Toronto FC, which had ended their five-game winless run after a bright start to the season had faded.
Meanwhile, New England Revolution came into the clash full of confidence after an impressive run of form, having defeated Minnesota United 2-1 in their previous outing.
The hosts needed just 16 minutes to break the deadlock as Toklomati showed quick feet to beat his marker before firing into the bottom corner after he was set up by Will Cleary.
New England responded well and pushed for an equalizer before the break, but Kristijan Kahlina produced an excellent save from a free-kick to preserve Charlotte’s advantage heading into half-time.
The Revolution were handed a major boost in the second half when Schnegg was shown a second yellow card in the 58th minute, reducing Charlotte to 10 men.
Despite enjoying a numerical advantage for over 30 minutes, the Revs failed to make it count as Kahlina continued to frustrate them with another series of important saves. The game eventually ended 1-0, leaving them with their second defeat in three matches as they dropped to fourth in the Eastern Conference.
Super Eagles ratings: How Alhassan Yusuf performed
Alhassan Yusuf marked his return to the Super Eagles squad with another impressive midfield display, although he could not prevent New England Revolution from slipping to their fifth defeat of the season.
The 25-year-old made his 14th appearance of the campaign and operated in a deeper midfield role throughout the contest. Yusuf completed the full 90 minutes and recorded 94 touches, which was the highest by any player in the match.
The Nigerian midfielder also registered an impressive 94% passing accuracy, completed 11 passes into the final third, while he also made three recoveries and two interceptions. He also won two duels during a solid performance and earned a rating of 6.5 according to Sofascore.
Yusuf is now expected to link up with his Super Eagles teammates in London ahead of the upcoming Unity Cup tournament.
The 25-year-old is in contention to feature in Tuesday’s opener against Zimbabwe and is also part of the squad for next month’s friendly matches against Poland and Portugal, giving him another opportunity to impress under head coach Eric Chelle.
