MLS Regular Season | Match #3
New England Revolution vs. Real Salt Lake
Saturday, March 12 | 7:30 p.m. ET
Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, Mass.
Watch: WSBK-TV38 (English), myRITV (English)
Listen: 98.5 The Sports Hub HD2 (English), 1260 AM Nossa Radio (Portuguese)
Revolution Pregame Live (6:45 p.m. ET)
- Pregame coverage streaming on Facebook, YouTube, and revolutionsocer.net
CURRENT FORM
New England Revolution
T-3rd in Eastern Conference (1-0-1, 4 pts.)
Last Result | 3-0 win vs. Pumas UNAM (CCL Quarterfinals)
The Revs are in the midst of a hectic start to the 2022 campaign, as they’ll open the season with six games in the span of just 22 days – four in the league and two in the Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League. They’ve gotten off to a strong start in both, claiming four points from a pair of regular season matches and a massive 3-0 win over Pumas UNAM in the first leg of their CCL Quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday night in Foxborough.
Saturday night will also be the Revolution’s third home match in the span of a week, having blanked both of their previous opponents with a 1-0 win over FC Dallas prior to that 3-0 triumph of Pumas. That’s been a continuation of the Revs’ home from of last year, when they had the best home record in Major League Soccer at 12-2-3.
Real Salt Lake
T-3rd in Western Conference (1-0-1, 4 pts.)
Last Result | 1-0 win vs. Seattle Sounders FC
Pablo Mastroeni and RSL enter 2022 aiming to build off their magical run to last year’s Western Conference Final, taking down higher seeds in Seattle Sounders FC and Sporting Kansas City before falling to Portland. They’re off to a solid start in that quest, taking four points from their first two matches without conceding a goal, one of five teams in MLS with a perfect defensive record through two weeks.
RSL have also only scored once through their first two games – a Bobby Wood goal last weekend – but it was enough for the Claret and Cobalt to claim an impressive 1-0 win over Seattle in a weather-delayed match at Rio Tinto Stadium.
KEY PLAYERS
Revolution forward Jozy Altidore
MLS veteran and Revolution newcomer Jozy Altidore has appeared off the bench in each of New England’s first three games – appearances of 11, 20, and 12 minutes – but the 32-year-old forward could have a bigger role to play on Saturday night when RSL visits Gillette Stadium. Head coach Bruce Arena has indicated that the Revs’ hectic schedule will lead to rotation, and Altidore could be leaned upon to provide a scoring punch.
Although he wasn’t officially credited with an assist, Altidore did play a role in the Revolution’s third goal on Wednesday night against Pumas. With his back to goal, Altidore deftly controlled a pass before laying off to Carles Gil, who drove forward and found Adam Buksa for the capper.
Real Salt Lake midfielder Scott Caldwell
Saturday night will be a homecoming for RSL midfielder Scott Caldwell, who spent the first nine years of his career playing for his hometown Revolution as the club’s second-ever Homegrown signing. Caldwell made 242 appearances for the Revs between the regular season and playoffs – top 10 all-time in the club’s history books – and started in both the 2014 MLS Cup Final and 2016 U.S. Open Cup Final.
A starter in each of RSL’s first two games, Caldwell has said he’s looking forward to playing against his former Revolution teammates, playing in front of the Revolution faithful, and seeing friends and family.
STATUS REPORT
Revolution
Matt Turner (lower leg) and Henry Kessler (muscle) are both listed as questionable ahead of Saturday night, but both seem likely to miss RSL’s visit to Gillette Stadium. Arena put a timeframe of “a couple of weeks” on Turner when asked on Tuesday, while he also noted that Kessler would “miss some games” after reaggravating a hamstring injury in last weekend’s win over FC Dallas.
Arena has also said the Revs are likely to rotate on Saturday night, as they attempt to stay fresh ahead of next Wednesday’s trip to Mexico City and the second leg of their Concacaf Champions League Quarterfinal series with Pumas UNAM.
“There will be some turnover, for sure,” Arena said on Friday afternoon. “Exactly what that will be, we’ll obviously finalize that tomorrow. But we’ll have some changes.”
Real Salt Lake
The visitors’ injury report features a few significant question marks ahead of Saturday night’s game, with Damir Kreilach – RSL team MVP with 16 goals and nine assists last season – the most notable, listed as questionable with a left calf injury. Right back Aaron Herrera (29 starts in 2021) is also questionable, as are goalkeepers Zac MacMath and David Ochoa, and forward Rubio Rubin.
Three players are listed as out for RSL: Zack Farnsworth, Nick Besler, and Bret Halsey.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
New England Revolution sporting director and head coach Bruce Arena
“We’re getting better. I think it was important to get not only the two league matches in, but the CCL game as well. I think we’ve gotten better every game, which is important. As I’ve said previously, we didn’t have the proper kind of preseason because of the loss of those CCL games. We’re getting caught up to speed now. We’ll really be tested over the next week with the three games in seven, eight days.”
New England Revolution defender Brandon Bye
“It’s using the team’s depth along with recovery and getting guys turned over for the next game. It's important that you get your sleep, get your good food, your rest when you need to, but you’ve also got to get your legs moving again, because the games come quick. So, that's important, but we'll be ready when the time comes.”
