FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Revolution advanced into Round One of the Audi 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs with a dramatic 2-1 win against the Montreal Impact at Gillette Stadium on Friday night. New England’s Gustavo Bou scored the game-winning goal in the fifth and final minute of second-half stoppage time, beating Impact goalkeeper Clement Diop to the far post with a right-footed shot from distance. Carles Gil scored the game’s opening goal with a left-footed volley off a cross from Bou in the 38th minute to put New England ahead before the break. Montreal’s Romell Quioto’s responded on the other side of halftime with a headed shot from the penalty area. With the win – the Revolution’s first in the postseason since 2014 – New England advances into Round One, where it will travel to face either the Philadelphia Union or Toronto FC on Tuesday night.

Both Gil and Bou scored their first career MLS Cup Playoff goals in tonight’s contest, which was also Bruce Arena’s 51st MLS Cup Playoff game coached – the most all-time. Bou, who also recorded the assist on Gil’s goal, set a single-game postseason club record tonight with eight shots. Since he joined New England in July of 2019, Bou has scored six times in the 85th minute or later, and has registered five game-winning goals across all competitions. Gil, who missed 17 games this season due to injury, paced the team with nine key passes and three shots on target. He also led the Revs in successful passes, crosses, and touches on the night.

Defender DeJuan Jones, making his second career MLS Cup Playoff appearance, was credited with the assist on Bou’s game-winning goal. Playing adjacent to Jones at right back was Tajon Buchanan, who logged his first professional start at the position and his first postseason appearance. He played 50 minutes before leaving the match with a knee injury. Henry Kessler, Adam Buksa, and Revolution Academy product Justin Rennicks also made their MLS Cup Playoff debuts in tonight’s match.

In net, goalkeeper Matt Turner registered four saves and his first career playoff win.

New England will return to action on Tuesday, when it will visit either the first-seeded Philadelphia Union or second-seeded Toronto FC, pending tonight’s result between Inter Miami CF and Nashville SC. If Nashville wins, then the Revolution will face Philadelphia on Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. ET. If Miami wins, then the Revolution will take on Toronto on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. ET.

POSTGAME NOTES
New England Revolution 2, Montreal Impact 1
November 20, 2020 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)

Revolution Earn 2-1 Playoff Victory over Montreal

• The Revolution opened the Audi 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs with a 2-1 win over the Montreal Impact. New England finishes the season with a 4-1-0 record against Montreal on the year across all competitions.
• The Revolution will play next on Tuesday, Nov. 24 in Round One, away against either the Philadelphia Union or Toronto FC.
• New England extended its unbeaten run at Gillette Stadium in postseason play to 13 games (10-0-3) dating back to the 2002 MLS Cup.
• The Revolution’s postseason record moves to 18-17-9 all-time. The win snaps a six-year drought without a playoff win for New England, marking the team’s first postseason victory since Nov. 22, 2014 at New York Red Bulls.

Arena Coaches Record 51st MLS Cup Playoff Game

Revolution Sporting Director and Head Coach Bruce Arena’s all-time playoff record moves to 33-12-6, including a 27-0-3 mark when his team scores first.

• Tonight’s match was Arena’s 51st playoff game coached, moving him ahead of Sigi Schmid (50) for the most in MLS annals.
• Arena’s 33 postseason wins are the most by a coach in MLS Cup Playoff history.

Bou Sets Pair of Franchise Records with Game-Winning Goal

• Forward Gustavo Bou scored the game-winning goal in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time, the latest postseason winning goal in franchise history.
• Bou also set a franchise postseason record with eight shots on the night, snapping the previous high of seven set on Nov. 8, 2007 by Taylor Twellman.

New England’s Designated Player Triumvirate Makes Second Consecutive Appearance

• Revolution Designated Players
• Gustavo Bou, Adam Buksa, and Carles Gil appeared together in New England’s attack for the third consecutive match and the fifth time this season. All three appeared in the Starting XI for the third time in 2020.
• Gil wore the captain’s armband for the second straight game and fourth time this season. The second-year midfielder logged a 90-minute shift scoring his first MLS Cup Playoffs goal while adding five shots and nine key passes along with a game-high 105 touches.
• Bou added a goal and an assist while completing 83 percent of his passes while Buksa registered three shots on target and won five of his 11 aerial duels.

Bunbury Eclipses 1,000 Postseason Minutes

• Forward Teal Bunbury reached 1,000 postseason minutes for his career with an 86-minute effort on Friday night.
• The game marked his 13th career MLS Cup Playoffs appearance, eight of which have come for New England.
• Bunbury finished the night with three shots and completed 89 percent of his passes.

Turner Notches First Postseason Win

• Goalkeeper Matt Turner made four saves en route to his first career postseason win, becoming just the fifth goalkeeper in club history to register a win in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
• Turner, who finished second in voting for MLS Goalkeeper of the Year, set a career-high this season with eight clean sheets.

Revolution Make Three Changes to Starting Lineup

• New England made a trio of changes to the starting lineup from the regular season finale on Nov. 8 at Philadelphia, with
• DeJuan Jones, Tommy McNamara, and Matt Polster all slotting into the starting lineup in place of Alexander Büttner, Brandon Bye, and Scott Caldwell.
• McNamara made his second career playoff appearance, completing 85 percent of his passes along with two recoveries, and an interception.
• Polster also made his second career appearance in the MLS Cup Playoffs, logging 90 minutes between defensive midfield and right back while recording three clearances and three interceptions.
• Jones made his second career postseason appearance, registering his first playoff assist on Gustavo Bou’s late winner while adding five tackles, four recoveries, and three interceptions along with 100 touches.

GAME CAPSULE

Referee: Jair Marrufo
Assistant Referee: Corey Rockwell (AR1), Jose Da Silva (AR2)
Fourth Official: Rubiel Vazquez
Video Assistant Referee: Alan Kelly
Weather: 50 and clear

Scoring Summary:
NE – Carles Gil (Gustavo Bou) 38’
MTL – Romell Quioto (Rudy Camacho) 61’
NE – Gustavo Bou (DeJuan Jones) 90’+5

Misconduct Summary:
NE – Gustavo Bou (Yellow Card – Handball) 6’
NE – Tommy McNamara (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 20’
MTL – Jorge Corrales (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 43’

New England Revolution: Matt Turner; DeJuan Jones, Henry Kessler, Andrew Farrell, Tajon Buchanan (Scott Caldwell 50’); Tommy McNamara (Lee Nguyen 63’), Matt Polster; Teal Bunbury (Justin Rennicks 86’), Carles Gil, Gustavo Bou, Adam Buksa

Substitutes Not Used: Brad Knighton, Michael Mancienne, Antonio Delamea, Seth Sinovic, Kelyn Rowe, Kekuta Manneh

Montreal: Clément Diop, Zachary Brault-Guillard, Luis Binks, Rod Fanni, Jorge Corrales (Mustafa Kizza HT); Emmanuel Maciel (Orji Okwonkwo 57’), Rudy Camacho, Amar Sejdic, Anthony Jackson-Hamel (Mason Toye 57’), Bojan, Romell Quioto

Substitutes Not Used: James Pantemis, Jonathan Sirois, Tomas Giraldo, Clément Bayiha, Karifa Yao, Steeven Saba