There are few things quite like a team snatching a draw from the jaws of victory. These sorts of capitulations are the sort which are remembered for quite some time to come; see Manchester United coming back from 3-0 down at Chelsea to draw 3-3 and propel themselves to the Barclays Premier League title in 2013. Then go on to see Liverpool throwing away a 3-0 lead at Crystal Palace in 2014 to throw away the Barclays Premier League title. While the Chicago Fire's 2-2 draw at New York City FC will not be remembered as well as those two, it could prove to be a pivotal moment in the season of both teams.

Chicago has struggled all season long, and have made a habit of playing well only to stupidly drop points late on. Meanwhile, NYCFC has struggled for points all year, and manager Jason Kreis has gone on the record to say that he didn't expect the Blues debut season to be this difficult. However, Friday night could be a turning point for the Cityzens.

An early goal from Razvan Cocis was a just reward for Chicago's early domination, and they continued to play well from that point on. Then, in the 26th minute, David Accam was played in on goal only for RJ Allen to hack him down in the box. Allen's dreadful challenge gifted the Fire a penalty and earned the defender a straight red card. Fire captain Jeff Larentowicz stepped up to convert the spot kick, and Chicago found themselves with a two goal and man advantage with 63 minutes still on the clock.

Chicago continued to dominate, but NYCFC never stopped fighting. They got their reward in first half stoppage time, when, with less than 10 seconds left in the one additional minute, David Villa hit a shot from distance. It bounced in front of Fire keeper Sean Johnson, and he could only parry the ball into the path of Blues midfielder Mehdi Ballouchy, who hit a one-time shot into the bottom corner. Suddenly, NYCFC had life.

Chicago continued to dominate play in the second period, and had half a dozen chances to put the game to bed. All season they've been punished for their inability to finish, and they were punished again on Friday. In stoppage time, Villa again played creator, picking the ball up in a dangerous position and slipping Shelton in on goal. The rookie forward shaped a wonderful finish inside the bottom corner and sent the Third Rail into raptures, rescuing a point for the Blues.

The draw lifts NYCFC to eighth in the Eastern Conference on seven points from their first 11 matches, but this could be a turning point in their season. They showed a remarkable amount of fight on the road last week in the first Hudson River Derby, and nearly came back from two goals down. Tonight, they did manage to pull off that comeback, and this could be a huge moment for NYCFC.

It's truly a case of two points dropped for Chicago. Although it was far from their cleanest performance of the season, they were in control and could easily have scored four or five goals on Friday. They still sit in fifth place in the East on 10 points, and will be confident of making the playoffs in the league's weaker conference. However, they have the potential to be picking up more points, and matches like this one could come back to bite them later on.

Key Moments

7' GOAL DISALLOWED! Harry Shipp strides down the left wing before Joevin Jones makes an overlapping run, and the attacking midfielder plays him in. He sends a ball across the face of goal, and NYCFC keeper Josh Saunders palms the ball away. It finds the feet of Kennedy Igboananike, who sends the ball back towards goal where it is tapped in by Shaun Maloney. However, the flag comes up and the goal is tacked off for offside.

14' GOAL CHICAGO! After Jones was hacked down, Maloney takes the free kick quickly. NYCFC is caught unawares, and he whips a superb ball into the box which is flicked in by Cocis. Superb lofted header from the midfielder. 

26' RED CARD! Accam with a superb run to split the NYCFC defence, and he's in alone on goal! Allen caught him from behind, and the striker went down. The referee points to the spot immediately, and has no hesitation before pulling out a red card.

27' GOAL CHICAGO! Jeff Larentowicz steps up to take the penalty, and he slots it to the keeper's left as Saunders goes the wrong way.

45+1' GOAL NYCFC! Villa picks up the loose ball at midfield, and goes off on a superb run before having a hit from distance. His shot swerves and bounces right in front of Johnson, who can only parry the shot into the path of Ballouchy, who calmly puts the ball into the back of the net.

70' SAVE! Villa is played in behind after a great pass from Andrew Jacobson, but he can't get much behind his shot and Johnson is able to make a superb save to preserve Chicago's lead.

90' MISS! Oh that was a great chance for Chicago to put the game to bed! A long, crossfield ball found Michael Stephens in all sorts of space on the right wing. He centered the ball to Jason Johnson 12 yards out from goal, but the substitute can only slice his shot wide of the post.

90+1' SAVE! Jones goes off on yet another barnstorming run down the left wing before creating space and serving in a great ball. Quincy Amarikwa gets a back heel to it but sends his acrobatic effort right to Saunders. Difficult take by Amarikwa, and he should have left it for Stephens, who was all alone at the far post.

90+1' GOAL NYCFC! Magical stuff from Villa! Diskerud found him in a tiny pocket of space 25 yards from goal, and some great footwork saw Villa beat three defenders. He then slipped in Shelton, and the rookie toe-poked the ball into the far corner. What a turn of events!