Andreas Ivan headed in Florian Valot's cross in the opening minutes for his first MLS goal, and the shorthanded New York Red Bulls held on for a 1-1 draw against Columbus Crew SC in both teams' regular season opener at MAPFRE Stadium.
Gaston Sauro nodded home Federico Higuain's corner to equalize just before halftime for the Crew in their first match under new coach Caleb Porter.
But as the Red Bulls rested many of their regulars in anticipation of their Concacaf Champions League quarterfinal commitments on Tuesday, neither side created much in the way of clear opportunities in the second 45 minutes.
Goals
Three Things
MOMENT OF THE MATCH:
Ivan's opener marked his second goal in as many competitive matches, after scoring in the late stages of Leg 2 of the Red Bulls CCL first-round victory over Atletico Pantoja:
.
Up Next
- CLB: Saturday, March 9 at New England Revolution (1 pm ET| MLS LIVE on ESPN+ in the US, MLS LIVE on DAZN in Canada)
- RBNY: Tuesday, March 5 vs. Santos Laguna, CCL quarterfinal first leg (8 pm ET | UDN, YahooSports.com)