TUCSON, Ariz. – A strong relationship between center back partners is of paramount importance.
“It’s very important because sometimes you don’t even talk. Sometimes you can’t talk because of the noise in the stadium,” said Jose Goncalves. “If you can feel or if you know what your partner’s going to do, you can read the game a little better. That’s why we try to keep up the communication.”
Goncalves has spent much of this preseason building that type of tacit understanding with Andrew Farrell, who has shifted from right back to central defense following the departure of A.J. Soares.
Farrell has extensive experience at center back having spent much of his college career at the position, and he made 10 appearances in central defense last season. The primary goal this preseason, then, has not been learning the position, but forming an on-field bond with Goncalves.
Thus far the Goncalves-Farrell pairing has seen time in each of New England’s four preseason games, including an extensive 70-minute run-out in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with the Colorado Rapids.
“It’s going to take time together,” said head coach Jay Heaps, who has called Farrell a natural center back. “That’s why we’re extending the moments with them together and really building that relationship.”
While it’s still a budding relationship, there have been signs throughout preseason that the bond is growing. New England didn’t concede a goal with Goncalves and Farrell on the field through their first three preseason contests, and Goncalves was named the CARF International Defender of the Cup for the first round of games in the Desert Diamond Cup.
It wasn’t until Gabriel Torres slipped behind Goncalves in the 48th minute of Saturday’s draw with Colorado that New England’s top center back pairing conceded a goal, but there was still a sense following the match that progress is being made each and every day.
“Day by day I think we get closer and much better. It’s step by step,” Goncalves said. “We try to communicate the maximum so it makes things easier.”
“I think the communication’s getting better and better each game and each practice,” said Farrell. “We’re just jelling a little bit every day. Every minute on the field that you can get together as a center back pair is huge. It’s an important spot where you need to trust each other and that trust is coming along really well.”
Less than two weeks remain until the Revs open the 2015 season on the road against Seattle Sounders FC, making the final two games of the Desert Diamond Cup a critical opportunity for Goncalves and Farrell to continue strengthening their bond.
“We’ve got two more games before the season starts,” said Farrell. “We’re excited to see how it goes.”
