Leagues Cup 2024 | Group Stage
New England Revolution vs. Mazatlán F.C.
Saturday, July 27 | 8 p.m. ET
Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, Mass.
Watch: FREE on Apple TV
English Talent: Chris Wittyngham (play-by-play), Lori Lindsey (analyst)
Spanish Talent: Oscar Salazar (play-by-play), Jaime Macias (analyst)
Listen: 1260 AM Nossa Radio (Portuguese)
CURRENT FORM
New England Revolution
15th in MLS Eastern Conference (7-14-2, 23 pts.)
Last Result | 1-1 draw vs. FC Dallas
With an MLS season not going quite as well as they would have hoped up to this point, the New England Revolution are now able to take a step away from domestic play and turn their attention to Leagues Cup 2024. After bowing out on penalties in the Round of 16 of last year’s edition, the Revs return to Leagues Cup looking to get going on another run and make their mark on the continental stage.
Head coach Caleb Porter said ahead of their first group game that the squad is still somewhat depleted, limiting the team’s options for rotation in this tournament. However, he has also said that hopes are high for the team to be more or less back to full strength once MLS play starts back up at the end of August, possibly bolstered further by a few signings, which would pave the way for New England to make a strong push for the playoffs in the last 11 games of the season.
Mazatlán F.C.
17th in Liga MX Apertura (0-3-1, 1 pt.)
Last Result | 2-0 loss at Chivas Guadalajara
The Apertura campaign may have only just gotten underway in Mexico, but it has not been a strong start thus far for Mazatlán F.C. Los Cañoneros have only one point from four matches, falling to a -6 goal difference in the process and sitting only one place above last in the table.
That being said, Leagues Cup 2024 could easily provide Mazatlán with an early chance to reset and refocus their season. They will also take confidence away from their performance in last year’s edition of the tournament, emerging top of their group over FC Juárez and Austin FC before only narrowly falling to FC Dallas in the Round of 32. Be prepared to see this Liga MX side come out desperate for a win on Saturday night.
KEY PLAYERS
Revolution forward Bobby Wood
In the absence of Giacomo Vrioni, veteran striker Bobby Wood has slotted into New England’s starting XI after recovering from an injury issue of his own, providing both a leadership and an attacking threat that are crucial for this depleted Revs squad.
Wood was pivotal to New England’s only goal last weekend against FC Dallas, one that ultimately went down as an own goal but one that the former USMNT striker said during the week that he felt should have been his. With Porter suggesting during the week that a starting XI similar to last weekend’s will take the field against Mazatlán, Wood should have his next opportunity to get his goal on Saturday night.
Mazatlán forward Luis Amarilla
The divided nature of the Liga MX calendar means that anyone can have the opportunity to stand out in any given torneo, and in the most recent Clausura it was forward Luis Amarilla who stepped up for Mazatlán F.C. The Paraguayan striker scored seven goals in the 17-game campaign, one short of the league-leading total for that stretch and three more than he’d notched in the 2023 Apertura.
Amarilla spent two seasons in MLS playing for Minnesota United FC, after a brief loan spell with the Loons in 2020, and failed to score in his only appearance against the Revolution in June 2022. Yet to open his account in Liga MX this season, Mazatlán’s frontman will certainly be eager to get on the scoresheet in his second career run out at Gillette Stadium.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
Revolution head coach Caleb Porter on the team’s performance against FC Dallas last weekend:
“Obviously, with the group we had, they fought hard, really hard. I thought we had the better of the game, just have to close the game out. We should take [away] a lot of positives. This is probably our first time where we’ve had a heavily rotated group that performed well. That was good to see, because in other times where we rotated heavily, and where we obviously chose to rotate heavily, we didn’t perform very well. So, it was great to see some of the guys step up and show the mentality that we need. Obviously, we have to close the game out, but a lot of that had to do with subs too. We’re very thin, but I was proud of the performance.”
Porter on the potential for roster rotation as the team continues to work through injuries:
“Who can we rotate? We’ve got nobody to rotate. So, if we could rotate, we would maybe think about rotating. But the way we’re playing right now, in the last four games, we’re playing the guys we have healthy, so there’s not much of a choice. If we were in a different situation, then obviously this tournament becomes much more of a priority. I have to be honest. We’re going to, obviously like every game, we’re going to try to win every game we play. We never try to lose. But we also understand how important the last 11 games are for a push for the [MLS] playoffs and what we can’t do is get anymore guys injured. So, we will be playing probably a very similar group that we played last game. We’re not getting any more guys back and we’re not deep enough to really rotate anymore.”
Porter on what he expects from Mazatlán F.C. after their shaky start in Liga MX:
“It’s like you see with us, I think we’re a lot better than where we sit. Teams that have underestimated us have seen that we’re a good team. Obviously, we’ve not gotten the results that we want; there have been some reasons behind that. So, it’s similar. They have a new coach [Victor Manuel Vucetich], very accomplished coach, and good players, and from what I see in the film they’re a very capable team that we can’t take lightly. It’s going to be a difficult match.”
Revolution midfielder Tommy McNamara on the team’s mentality going into Leagues Cup 2024:
“It is a new competition. We want to compete for trophies, and this is an opportunity to win a trophy. We have had a very frustrating and difficult season up until this point. A little bit of a roller coaster, so it’s an opportunity to compete for another trophy and it’s an opportunity for us to kind of cement who we are, what we are trying to be, and how we want to play. I’m looking forward to the opportunity.”
McNamara on Homegrown defender Peyton Miller and his potential as a player:
“He is a big talent. He has got a bright future ahead of him. You see how well he took to his debut in Philadelphia, and how well he took to his first start. So, he has got a bright future ahead of him. He’s a really good kid, very mature, so I think he has a long way to go.”
Revolution forward Bobby Wood on the team’s mindset going into Leagues Cup:
“It’s a great opportunity to build our confidence. I know we have some guys out but at the end of the day we want to win each game and each game will help our confidence, so that’s our goal.”
Wood on how Homegrown defender Peyton Miller compares to other young talents he’s seen:
“From a talent standpoint, he’s amazing. At 16, being with the first team, not looking like he is a 16-year-old – it’s very positive, you know? And I just, I’m rooting for him. I hope he continues, just like all our other young guys, I hope they continue to grow. A lot of them have stepped up with all the injuries we have, and it’s good to see that they’ve got that confidence in them. I just hope they just continue that, and they’ll be on a good path.”
