CINCINNATI, Ohio – New England Revolution head coach Bruce Arena hailed his side’s determination and resilience in Saturday night’s thrilling 2-2 draw at FC Cincinnati.
The Revs earned a notable point against the Eastern Conference and Supporters’ Shield leaders, battling back from a goal down to lead 2-1 before Dominique Badji (who had found the net at both ends in the first half with the opener and an own goal) leveled 10 minutes after the break.
The stalemate saw New England become the first visiting team to take a point from TQL Stadium this term, snapping the hosts’ 100 percent home record in 2023. Although Arena admitted he was disappointed with the overall performance, he praised the squad’s character to grind out a positive result in difficult conditions.
“It was good,” he reflected. “It’s good to get the point. Their goalkeeper [Roman Celentano] maybe could be at fault a little for spilling the ball in front of the goal, creating the own goal – but I liked our attitude.
“I don’t think we played particularly well – our passing was poor. I didn’t have any particular expectations – I never know what the game is going to look like … It was a hard-fought game, for sure – we didn’t do a good job with our passing – against a tough opponent.
“We did a good job [to earn a point]. It was really hot and humid – it was probably in the mid-80s. It was a tough game for us, and I think our guys certainly felt the heat in the second half.”
Netting his fourth goal of the season – and second in his last three games – Bou turned the game on its head with a well-taken low drive, having crafted the Revs’ equalizer with a shot that Celentano parried onto Badji, with the ball ricocheting off the Cincinnati forward and over the line.
New England are unbeaten in all bar three occasions when Bou has scored (27-3-11 in all competitions). With the striker having missed large parts of the season through injury, Arena noted the 33-year-old is still working his way back to full fitness, but praised the Argentine’s crucial contribution.
“He did a good job,” he added. “He was part of the two goals – he obviously scored one, and had the shot on the first one to create the own goal.
“He’s been back only a couple of weeks. As we move forward, his fitness will improve, and he’ll continue to be a guy who can score goals for us.”
There was also praise for goalkeeper Djordje Petrović, who impressed with five key saves to help his side to a valuable point.
The Serbian shot-stopper earned an inclusion to the MLS All-Star Team earlier in the week, and once again demonstrated his quality and importance to the Revs.
“He played real well,” Arena continued. “He made a couple of big saves. He can’t be at fault for any of the goals, that’s for sure.
“He did a good, solid job, and he did a good job of dealing with some dangerous crosses as well. He did well.”
Meanwhile, Arena introduced Homegrown midfielders Jack Panayotou and Damián Rivera in the second half, allowing the youngsters the chance to test themselves against the league leaders.
Panayotou stepped out for his eighth MLS appearance, and his head coach acknowledged the value of increased first and second team exposure in the midfielder’s development.
“He did okay,” Arena said. “He’s a young player – he needs more experience, more time with the second team to help prepare him for the first team.
“He hung in there, he did okay. The game is still a little quick for him – he’ll get a little bit better as he continues to move forward.”
