FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Teal Bunbury carefully weighed all of his options. When his contract expired following the 2014 season, he was free to explore opportunities outside of Major League Soccer. Meanwhile, the New England Revolution made clear their desire to bring him back.
Bunbury took the appropriate time and made his decision, re-signing with the Revs in a move that was officially announced by the club on Wednesday afternoon.
The 24-year-old winger is thrilled that he’ll continue to call Foxborough home.
“It’s a great feeling,” said Bunbury. “When there’s a little uncertainty or you just don’t know what your future holds, in the back of your head you just want to be settled in somewhere and you want to be wanted somewhere. That’s exactly where I am now.
“New England’s done everything in their power to show me that they want me to be here. I couldn’t be more excited to stay here, hopefully for the foreseeable future, and to try to bring championships to this team. It’s a great honor to be back with the Revs.”
It should come as no surprise that the Revs were keen on retaining Bunbury – General Manager Michael Burns called it one of the club’s priorities this offseason – after the young attacker played a key role in guiding the Revs to an MLS Cup appearance last season.
In his first year in New England, Bunbury settled in to a regular role on the wing, starting 28 regular-season games while registering four goals and a team-high six assists. He added two crucial goals and two assists in the MLS Cup Playoffs to help the Revs reach the league’s title game.
The 2014 season was somewhat of a rebirth for Bunbury, who struggled to regain a starting spot with Sporting Kansas City upon his return from ACL surgery midway through 2013. A preseason trade to the Revs offered a fresh start – one he made use of at every opportunity.
“For me personally, I felt it was a great season,” Bunbury said. “There’s always ups and downs in a season and I feel like I was able to progress, get better and really get an understanding for this team.
“I feel like I was able to have a good year, but I know I have more in me. That’s my main focus now. I’m signed and I’m here. Now that’s my motivation is to repay all these things people have done for me.”
Bunbury pointed to the chemistry in New England’s locker room as a major factor in his desire to stay – “People might not know how much that really plays a part in how you play on the field,” he said – as well as the club’s standing as a preseason favorite in the Eastern Conference.
“We have the potential to win championships,” Bunbury said. “I feel like those are going to be our ultimate goals – to win the U.S. Open Cup, to make it to MLS Cup again, and win it this time. We have the tools to do it.”
With Bunbury on board, New England will return 16 of the 18 players who dressed for MLS Cup, with only A.J. Soares (out of contract) and Patrick Mullins (selected by New York City FC in the Expansion Draft) not on the Revolution’s roster for 2015.
In a sense, Bunbury’s re-signing makes Thursday afternoon’s SuperDraft a success for the Revs even before MLS Commissioner Don Garber begins announcing picks. It was the Revolution’s first-round selection in this year’s draft (20th overall) which was sent to Sporting KC to acquire Bunbury.
With preseason camp a little more than one week away, Bunbury is already in the Boston area preparing for the 2015 campaign. Although it’s been a short offseason – the Revs played in MLS Cup less than six weeks ago – he’s more than ready to get back to the grind.
And this year, there may even be a little extra motivation.
“There’s still a little bitter taste in my mouth – in a lot of the players, if not all of them – after how last season ended,” Bunbury said. “We had a great year, but we’re not satisfied.”
