MLS Regular Season | Match #6
New England Revolution vs. New York City FC
Saturday, April 1 | 7:30 p.m. ET
Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, Mass.
Watch: Available FREE on the Apple TV app
- English Talent: Callum Williams (play-by-play), Jamie Watson (analyst)
- Spanish Talent: Stefano Fusaro (play-by-play), Luis Gerardo Bucci (analyst)
Listen: 98.5 The Sports Hub (English), 1260 AM Nossa Radio (Portuguese)
- English Talent: Brad Feldman (play-by-play), Charlie Davies (analyst)
o Call also available to sync on Apple TV
Click HERE for a guide on how to sync the home call with Brad Feldman and Charlie Davies on Apple TV
CURRENT FORM
New England Revolution
1st in Eastern Conference (4-1-0, 12 pts.)
Last Result | 2-1 win at D.C. United
The Revolution’s strong start to 2023 continued last weekend as they moved to the top of the Eastern Conference standings with a 2-1 win at D.C. United. New England’s first three victories this season had all come via shutout, but they found a new way to win at Audi Field, erasing a halftime deficit with goals from Gustavo Bou and Noel Buck to become one of just two teams leaguewide (along with St. Louis CITY SC) to win four games through five matchdays. Buck (17) joined Esmir Bajraktarević (18) and Jack Panayotou (18) in midfield as the Revs started three players aged 18 or younger for the first time in club history, while Carles Gil notched his 50th MLS assist.
Saturday night’s meeting with NYCFC begins a home-heavy month of April for the Revs, who’ll play four of their five games in the friendly confines of Gillette Stadium.
New York City FC
7th in Eastern Conference (2-2-1, 7 pts.)
Last Result | 1-0 loss at Houston Dynamo FC
As is often the case in MLS, New York City FC have been largely dependent on home form through first month of the 2023 season. Nick Cushing’s side has won both games played at Yankee Stadium, but NYCFC have managed just one point from three road games, going 0-2-1 on trips to Nashville, Chicago, and Houston.
Consistently one of the league’s top teams in recent years, NYCFC followed up their 2021 title-winning season with another trip to the Eastern Conference Championship last year after a third-place finish. They’ve brought back several key pieces in trying to maintain that level, including James Sands, who has started four games this season after spending the 2022 campaign on loan with Rangers FC.
KEY PLAYERS
Revolution midfielder Noel Buck
Gustavo Bou has scored in back-to-back games and Carles Gil became the fifth-fastest player in MLS history to record 50 assists last weekend, but most of the headlines have been reserved for Noel Buck, a Homegrown midfielder still a few days shy of his 18th birthday. Buck has started all five games for the Revs this season and twice has been named as part of the MLS Team of the Matchday for his performances.
Buck has shown a wide range of skillsets through the first 12 appearances of his MLS career, including an ability to find the back of the net, as he bagged his second MLS goal in the 88th minute last weekend at Audi Field. His first goal? A long-range rocket the last time NYCFC visited Gillette Stadium, a 3-0 win for the Revolution last September.
NYCFC midfielder Santiago Rodríguez
NYCFC’s roster has undergone significant changes since lifting MLS Cup in 2021, but one key piece that remains is Santiago Rodríguez. The 23-year-old Designated Player spent the past two seasons on loan from Montevideo City Torque, and NYCFC moved to make it a permanent switch in early March, signing Rodríguez to a long-term contract.
Rodríguez played a key role in NYCFC’s title-winning 2021 campaign, scoring the opening goal as they advanced past the Revolution in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The clever Uruguayan broke out in 2022 with four goals and a team-leading 13 assists, and he’s racked up one goal and one assist through four games this year.
STATUS REPORT
Revolution
Dylan Borrero and Christian Makoun have wrapped up international duty with Colombia and Venezuela, respectively, but their availability for this weekend depends largely on how they recover physically. With regards to Borrero, who made a late substitute appearance in Colombia’s 2-1 win over Japan in Osaka on Tuesday, sporting director and head coach Bruce Arena said he would expect that amount of travel to take a toll.
“That time change is huge, and the travel,” Arena said, referencing his experience coaching the U.S. Men’s National Team at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan and South Korea. “I would be surprised if [Borrero] is going to be available this weekend. If he’s available, I think it would be with some limited minutes.”
In terms of injuries, Arena said that he expects Latif Blessing – who missed last weekend’s win over D.C. after requiring stitches for a cut on his leg – to need “maybe another week.” Nacho Gil (right leg), Jacob Jackson (left ACL), Maciel (left Achilles), and Tommy McNamara (left leg) are all listed as out having yet to appear this season.
Speaking about the health of Carles Gil, who came off the bench to play 28 minutes last weekend at Audi Field, Arena said “he’s as good as anyone on our team.”
NYCFC
Availability information not provided.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
New England Revolution sporting director and head coach Bruce Arena
“In this league, you need to get your points at home, and we'd certainly like to get three points each and every game and that would obviously position us well after the month of April's done with because in May, we go on the road for an extended period of time, so those things do balance themselves out, but playing well at home is important. And we've generally been a real good team at home, so hopefully we can continue to continue that.”
New England Revolution midfielder Matt Polster
“When you look at [New York City FC’s] track record, they’re one of the better teams in the league on a consistent basis, and that’s where we want to be. I think we’ve kind of achieved that over the course of the last couple years. I think we had a tough last season, but they’re the team we’ve had a tough time with, at times. They obviously beat us in the playoffs when we did really well in 2021, and that kind of hurt. So, you always look at those moments and they kind of translate into the games, and you know it's a little extra something that makes you want to win and get three points.”
