MLS Regular Season | Match #2
New England Revolution vs. Houston Dynamo FC
Saturday, March 4 | 7:30 p.m. ET
Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, Mass.
Watch: _MLS Season Pass_ on Apple TV
English Talent: Callum Williams (play-by-play), Calen Carr (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 on MLS Season Pass
CURRENT FORM
New England Revolution
T-4th in Eastern Conference (1-0-0, 3 pts.)
Last Result | 1-0 win at Charlotte FC
Henry Kessler put together a Team of the Matchday performance on opening weekend, scoring the game-winning goal in the 89th minute and helping New England keep a clean sheet in a 1-0 win over Charlotte FC, the Revolution’s first season-opening victory since 2013. The Revs were one of eight Eastern Conference teams to earn three points in their opener, but they were the only ones to do it on the road.
On Saturday night the Revs return to Foxborough to host Houston Dynamo FC at Gillette Stadium, where they’re 9-1-6 in home openers dating back to 2006, including 1-0 wins the past two years. With that said, New England will undoubtedly be looking to improve upon last year’s home record, as the Revs were just 7-4-6 in Foxborough.
Houston Dynamo FC
T-9th in Western Conference (0-1-0, 0 pts.)
Last Result | 2-1 loss at FC Cincinnati
Houston will be on the road for a second straight weekend, having opened the season with a 2-1 loss to FC Cincinnati last Saturday night at TQL Stadium. Tate Schmitt scored the Dynamo’s only goal to briefly pull the visitors level just before halftime, but Cincinnati responded shortly after the break to leave Houston still in search of their first point of 2023 as they head to Foxborough.
Longtime D.C. United player and head coach Ben Olsen is now leading the charge in Houston, taking over as the Dynamo’s head coach for the new campaign. The 45-year-old, who has a strong relationship with Revolution sporting director and head coach Bruce Arena, is looking to bring Houston back to the postseason for the first time since 2017.
KEY PLAYERS
Revolution midfielder Noel Buck
The center back duo of Henry Kessler and Dave Romney earned plenty of plaudits following the Revolution’s season-opening win in Charlotte, but the player garnering the most praise may well have been 17-year-old Homegrown midfielder Noel Buck. The Arlington, Mass., native had a team-high four interceptions and forced the turnover that ultimately led to Kessler’s game-winning goal.
Last weekend’s standout performance marked just a fourth career MLS start for Buck, and consistent showings could see him play an increased role in the Revolution’s midfield moving forward.
Dynamo midfielder Héctor Herrera
American soccer fans will be plenty familiar with Héctor Herrera, the 32-year-old midfielder who has made more than 100 appearances for Mexico on the international stage. The Designated Player was announced as a Dynamo signing last March, and arrived in the summer to make his MLS debut in July en route to 10 appearances (six starts) through the second half of the 2022 season.
Arena praised Herrera as “one of the best players in the league” and was highly complimentary of his performance against Cincinnati, as it was Herrera’s corner kick that created Schmitt’s goal at TQL Stadium.
STATUS REPORT
Revolution
A familiar face returned to training this week as DP forward Gustavo Bou joined the Revolution in Foxborough, hitting the field for the first time on Tuesday morning. The 33-year-old missed out on preseason prep with the Revs while in Argentina working to obtain his green card, and while Bou kept himself fit during that time, Arena said it will take a while for him to get fully up to speed and that he won’t be available on Saturday night.
“He’s been working hard in a gym, basically, but that doesn’t help you once they make the field big,” Arena said. “We’ll see how he feels throughout the week.”
The Revs officially list six players as out for Saturday’s home opener: Andrew Farrell (right leg), Nacho Gil (right leg), Tommy McNamara (left leg), Maciel (Left Achilles), Jacob Jackson (Left ACL), and Jack Panayotou (illness). Arena said other than Maciel and Jackson – both recovering from surgery – none of the other injuries and ailments are expected to be long term.
“It’s nothing serious with exception to Maciel and Jackson, who have had surgery,” Arena said. “We knew they were going to take time, but everyone else will be back soon.”
Dynamo
The visitors list just one player as officially out for Saturday’s game – veteran left back Brad Smith – with four more listed as questionable. Offseason signings Amine Bassi (lower extremity) and Franco Escobar (lower extremity) are questionable with injuries, while both Ifunanyachi Achara and Djevencio van der Kust are “pending documentation” to determine their status for the trip to Foxborough.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
New England Revolution sporting director and head coach Bruce Arena
“The whole team, it was a real good team effort. With any team in any year, I think winning your first game’s a real plus. It gives our guys a real boost as we continue to move forward into the season, so that was real good and I think it’s created a real positive atmosphere.”
New England Revolution midfielder Matt Polster
“When you look at Houston, you can tell that their midfield is quite dynamic and they they're very good on the ball [Adalberto] Carrasquilla, [Hector] Herrera and Artur obviously, you know, those guys have a lot of experience within not just the league but in the world. And for that, you know, we have to be ready from the start and make sure that we control the tempo of the game because I know they're going to want to have the ball and if we can limit that, I think will we'll see ourselves getting three points on the weekend.”
