FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – On the whole it was mission accomplished for the New England Revolution on their recent two-game homestand.
After opening the season with a pair of frustrating road losses – conceding five goals and scoring none – the Revs returned to Foxborough aiming to steady the ship. With their first shutout of the year in a 0-0 draw with the Montreal Impact and their first goals and win in a 2-1 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes, players can feel the tide turning as the calendar flips to April.
“We had to have a reaction after two bad games to start the season,” said captain Jose Goncalves. “I was expecting a good performance from the team – nothing else – and that’s what everyone did.”
Kelyn Rowe’s first-half double broke the ice in terms of goal-scoring this past weekend against San Jose, but it was the team’s overall defensive performance which provided the base for a pair of positive results.
The Revs conceded just one goal in 180 minutes of action – and that came from the penalty spot – while goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth was relatively untroubled, required to make only six saves combined.
“Having watched the film and breaking it down, we really were relentless on defense,” said head coach Jay Heaps. “It wasn’t just the back four – it was also the guys in front.”
Heaps praised the front four of Charlie Davies, Lee Nguyen, Rowe and Juan Agudelo for their tireless pressure as the first line of defense, while he called the back four’s performance against the Earthquakes “pretty much flawless.” There was also praise for Scott Caldwell and Daigo Kobayashi.
Goncalves said the collective defensive effort had much to do with increased communication.
“It’s very important that we speak always, especially in the games,” he said. “Sometimes it’s tough, but during the week we have more time to fix the little issues we think should be better for the game. It will help the team improve offensively and defensively, and it can only improve.”
The Revolution’s objective now will be to continue improving as they return to the road, as they’ll visit the remarkably stingy Colorado Rapids – three straight 0-0 draws to open the season – on Saturday.
“From here we build,” said Goncalves. “When you have a better performance, you can build on it, so that’s what we did. A draw, then after a win, and now that’s something we have to keep on doing during the week to get success at the weekend.”
