Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup | Round of 32
New England Revolution vs. FC Cincinnati
Wednesday, May 11 | 7 p.m. ET
Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, Mass.
Watch: ESPN+ (WATCH HERE)
CURRENT FORM
New England Revolution
11th in Eastern Conference (3-5-2, 11 pts.)
Last Result | 2-2 draw vs. Columbus Crew
Adam Buksa stretched his goal-scoring streak to a career-best four games and DeJuan Jones found the back of the net for the first time in 2022, but the Revs settled for a 2-2 draw with the Columbus Crew this past Saturday night at Gillette Stadium. The hosts were left simultaneously satisfied with their resolve in erasing a 1-0 halftime deficit to take a 2-1 lead, and frustrated to once again drop points by conceding a late goal.
The result did extend the Revs’ home unbeaten run to three games (2-0-1), and they’ll now host FC Cincinnati on Wednesday night in a return to the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, entering at the Round of 32 by virtue of last year’s Supporters’ Shield title. COVID cancelled the tournament in both 2020 and 2021, so this will be New England’s first foray into the competition since 2019, and their first home match in the Open Cup since 2017.
FC Cincinnati
5th in Eastern Conference (5-5-1, 16 pts.)
Last Result | 1-0 win at Minnesota United
FC Cincinnati has found new life under first-year head coach Pat Noonan – who played for the Revolution from 2003-07 and won the Open Cup in his final year with the club – going 5-5-1 through 11 games, including a trio of road wins. They’ll carry a three-game winning streak into Foxborough, having taken the full nine points from two victories over Toronto FC and a triumph over Minnesota United.
While the Revs are entering the competition on Wednesday night, FCC has already played one U.S. Open Cup match, having advanced past Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC with a 2-0 victory in extra time courtesy of a pair of goals from Álvaro Barreal.
KEY PLAYERS
Revolution midfielder Emmanuel Boateng
Smack in the middle of a stretch of three games in nine days, it’s possible that head coach Bruce Arena will opt for a bit of rotation on Wednesday night, meaning New England may call upon some veterans to step into significant roles against FC Cincinnati. One of those players could be Ema Boateng, who has four starts on the season but featured as a substitute last weekend against the Columbus Crew.
Boateng provided the assist on DeJuan Jones’ goal just two minutes after stepping onto the field against the Crew and now has one goal and two assists in just 367 minutes this year. The seven-year MLS veteran has been a consistent threat off the bench for New England – totaling three goals and seven assists in just under 750 minutes the past two years – and the Revs may need that spark on Wednesday night.
FC Cincinnati midfielder Álvaro Barreal
Head coach Pat Noonan used a mixed squad in Cincinnati’s 2-0 win over Pittsburgh in the last round of the Open Cup, and he may once again call upon his depth in the midst of playing eight games in less than a month. The key man in that win over Pittsburgh was Álvaro Barreal, who played the full 120 minutes and scored both goals, including the game winner from the penalty spot.
Barreal was a consistent starter with FCC last year – registering three goals and three assists in 26 starts – but the 21-year-old Argentine has featured mostly as a substitute in 2022 with six of his nine appearances coming off the bench. Barreal did, however, start in both of Cincinnati’s recent wins over Toronto.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
New England Revolution assistant coach Richie Williams
“Well, it’s a high priority for us. We go out every game to compete and to win, and get a good result. That’s the way we’re approaching the game. We’ll have a lineup on the field that we feel is going to be able to compete and be able to win the game. That’s our message to the team. That’s what we’ll have out there tomorrow night. Again, U.S. Open Cup is very important for us. Any competition we’re in, we want to do well, we want to win, we want to advance, and we want to win championships.”
New England Revolution midfielder Tommy McNamara
“We’re definitely excited for it. It’s another trophy to compete for and it has a big benefit to it, to winning it and getting back into the [Concacaf] Champions League. So yeah, we're excited for the opportunity, happy that it's finally back again. It presents an awesome opportunity for all levels of American soccer to compete for this trophy. I remember doing it in college playing on summer teams and playing Open Cup games and that was a big moment to go and play a USL team or something like that. So, I’ve definitely been a part of it now and happy for it to be back again.”
