COLUMBUS, Ohio – The New England Revolution will look to build off last weekend’s hard-fought win over Minnesota United FC when they head back on the road this Saturday night, as they’ll visit Columbus Crew SC in an early-season rematch at MAPFRE Stadium.
Kickoff between the Revs (1-3-1, 4 pts.) and Crew SC (3-1-1, 10 pts.) is set for 7:30 p.m., with NBC Sports Boston televising the match and streaming the action live for authenticated subscribers on NBCSportsBoston.com and the NBC Sports Boston mobile app.
Matchday Guide | Everything you need to know before the Revs visit Crew SC
English radio listeners can catch Brad Feldman and Paul Mariner simulcasting the action on 98.5 The Sports Hub, while the Portuguese call will be available on 1260 AM Nossa Radio USA.
Postgame coverage on NBC Sports Boston will begin immediately after the final whistle, while host Matt McCarthy and former Revolution midfielder Clyde Simms will take calls for 30 minutes postgame on 98.5 The Sports Hub.
Current Form: Spirits high as Revs look to build off first win; Crew SC climbing in the East
The Revs brushed aside a frustrating start to the season last weekend against Minnesota, snapping a three-game skid with a much-needed victory at Gillette Stadium. Center back Jalil Anibaba and second-year pro Brandon Bye – playing in a more advanced right-wing role – scored rare goals to guide New England to victory.
Highlights | Anibaba, Bye score either side of halftime as Revs pick up three big points
It’s a result that has lifted spirits in Revolution camp, particularly after a tough week of training leading into the Minnesota match, but players and coaches are keenly aware that they’ll need to build a bit of momentum from that win to keep themselves ticking in the right direction.
“It was huge for the morale,” admitted Teal Bunbury, who set up Bye’s game winner against the Loons. “You can tell when we get into the locker room, guys are excited for training. Not that we usually aren’t, but when you get three points and we hadn’t had that yet this year, it’s huge for everybody’s confidence.
“It’s a big turning point for us. I know it’s only five games into the season, but we’ve got to look forward now and try to build off this momentum.”
Head coach Brad Friedel provided the spark that ignited last weekend’s win by making six changes to the starting lineup and tweaking things tactically, dropping Carles Gil into midfield and pairing Bunbury up top with Juan Agudelo, while pushing Bye to the right wing.
Read | Attacking reshuffle vs. Minnesota gave Revs “more options”
Those changes left several longtime starters out of the mix, and Friedel expects the competition level to ramp up even more than usual as players fight to regain their starting spots.
“I expect competition for places to rise even again,” said Friedel. “I stand by my comments that we have a very good squad, and everyone is going to want to get on that field.”
Columbus will present quite the challenge on Saturday night as Crew SC are tied atop the Eastern Conference standings with three wins, one draw, and one loss from their first five games, including a 2-0-1 mark at home.
Gyasi Zardes has been the danger man for Columbus, scoring both goals when Crew SC visited Gillette Stadium four weeks ago and adding another in their 2-0 win over Atlanta United FC last weekend.
“He’s very mobile as a forward,” said Andrew Farrell, who made his 2019 debut last weekend. “He’s scoring a lot in the box, so if you’re not tight to him in the box, he’s going to score.
“He’s been scoring with his left foot, right foot, headers – so, just being tight to him. Whether it’s my job, whoever’s playing center back, whoever’s playing outside back – just being tight to guys is very important.”
Past Meetings: Revs and Crew SC set for early-season rematch in Columbus
The 2019 season is barely a month old, but Saturday night’s clash at MAPFRE Stadium is already the second and final meeting of the campaign between the Revs and Crew SC, who met four weeks ago in Foxborough.
Zardes scored both goals in Crew SC’s 2-0 win in that match, which provided ample evidence that new head coach Caleb Porter has instilled many of the same philosophies that previous manager – and now U.S. National Team head coach – Gregg Berhalter had implemented during his time in Columbus, but with his own twist.
“We got to see the little subtle nuances that Caleb is trying to instill,” said Friedel. “He’s getting the best out of (Federico) Higuain, he’s getting the best out of Zardes, and they have some good players. But now that we’ve seen them once, we’ll make a couple of adjustments ourselves and hopefully we can get the three points.”
They’re three points that New England would love to get, as they’ve won just once in their last seven regular-season meetings with Columbus (1-5-1) dating back to 2016. The last time New England won at MAPFRE Stadium was in the first leg of the 2014 Eastern Conference Semifinals, although they did secure a 2-2 draw in their only visit to Columbus last season.
“Personally, it’s one of the teams that we want to beat the most out of anybody in the league, because they just always come out on top against us,” said Agudelo. “We don’t know why, but it’s a good opportunity this weekend to change that, so (we’re) looking forward to it.”
Injury Report: Angking (knee surgery), Rennicks (hamstring) remain sidelined
Isaac Angking (knee surgery) and Justin Rennicks (hamstring) will both be sidelined once again this weekend, although Rennicks has progressed to agility exercises and shouldn’t be too far off from a return. Angking, meanwhile, is expected be rehabbing his left knee until at least mid-May.
Columbus will be without right back Harrison Afful, who will be sidelined for at least six weeks after fracturing his jaw in last weekend’s win over Atlanta.
Final Thoughts: Ohio native and ex-player Friedel “happy that the Crew is staying put”
“I’m very, very happy that they were able to keep the team in Columbus,” said Friedel, who grew up in Lakewood, Ohio, and played for Columbus from 1996-97. “Not that I could be very vocal about it before because of my position here, but being an Ohio native and also being an ex-player from Columbus, I’m happy that the Crew is staying put.”
