FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (July 3, 2024) – The New England Revolution (7-11-1; 22 pts.) defeated Atlanta United FC (6-9-6; 24 pts.), 2-1, on Wednesday night with over 20,171 fans on hand at Gillette Stadium. The Revolution, winners of five of their last six matches, were led to victory by forward Giacomo Vrioni’s two-goal performance, his second brace in the last three games. Defender DeJuan Jones and Homegrown midfielder Noel Buck each collected an assist in the win, while goalkeeper Aljaž Ivačič registered six saves to help secure the win.
New England started Wednesday’s match on the offensive from the opening whistle, aided by winger Dylan Borrero, who returned to the starting lineup after a two-game injury absence. The Revolution’s early efforts culminated in a goal from Vrioni in the 11th minute. The 25-year-old striker collected a pass from Jones and nutmegged his defender to create space for a left-footed strike. Jones, who suited up for his 125th MLS start on Wednesday, recorded his first helper of the 2024 campaign on the early tally.
The Revolution continued to pressure Atlanta’s defense with scoring opportunities in the ensuing minutes. Once again, Vrioni rewarded New England’s labor in the attack with his second goal of the night in the 45th minute, giving him five tallies in the last four games. Buck delivered a pinpoint cross to the back stick, where Vrioni leapt to meet it and redirect a shot past Brad Guzan, sending the Revolution into the halftime break with a 2-0 advantage. Buck has now reached the scoresheet in two of his last four games played.
New England kept the visitors at bay in the second half, maintaining the two-goal lead until Atlanta reached the scoreboard on forward Daniel Ríos’ goal in stoppage time. The Revolution held on for the win, giving the team its third home win in the last four games in Foxborough. Ivačič, who made his 10th start since joining New England in April, recorded his sixth victory of the season. Henry Kessler returned to the Starting XI, pairing with Xavier Arreaga in central defense.
New England concludes the two-match week with a visit to Western Conference opponent Seattle Sounders FC on Saturday night. The match kicks off at 10:30 p.m. ET at Lumen Field and airs on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app in English and Spanish. Listen to New England’s local radio call on 98.5 The Sports Hub (WBZ-FM) with Brad Feldman and Charlie Davies. Portuguese commentary is available via 1260 AM Nossa Radio.
MATCH NOTES
- With tonight’s victory, New England evened the all-time series against Atlanta at 5-5-4, including a 4-1-2 mark in Foxborough.
- New England is unbeaten in its last 25 matches when leading at halftime (22-0-3) dating back to March 2022. Since the start of 2021, the Revolution have lost just once in 41 matches when leading at half (35-1-5).
- Giacomo Vrioni tallied his second multi-goal game in the last three matches, giving him five goals in the last four games.
- DeJuan Jones marked his 125th MLS start with his first assist of the season on Vrioni’s opening goal. Jones recorded two key passes on the night.
- Noel Buck, making his second consecutive start, notched his first assist of the regular season on Vrioni’s second goal. New England is now 7-0-1 when Buck finds the scoresheet in MLS play.
- Aljaž Ivačič notched six saves in the winning effort, improving to 6-4-0 in 10 starts for New England.
- Dylan Borrero returned to the lineup for the first time since June 15, registering two shots.
- Esmir Bajraktarević had a team-high three key passes in his third consecutive 90-minute outing.
- New England is 4-0-0 this season when Jonathan Mensah appears off the bench.
- Caleb Porter earned the 120th win of his MLS career, one shy of matching Jason Kreis (121) for 11th-most all-time. Porter also improves to 99-14-33 in matches when his team scores first.
GAME CAPSULE
MLS Matchday #24
New England Revolution vs. Atlanta United FC
July 3, 2024 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
Referee: Jair Marrufo
Assistant Referee: Ian McKay
Assistant Referee: Matthew Nelson
Fourth Official: Guido Gonzales Jr.
Video Asst. Referee: Daniel Radford
Assistant Video Asst. Referee: Tom Supple
Weather: 73 degrees and partly cloudy
Attendance: 20,171
Scoring Summary:
NE – Giacomo Vrioni 6 (DeJuan Jones 1) 11’
NE – Giacomo Vrioni 7 (Noel Buck 1, Esmir Bajraktarević 2) 45’
ATL – Daniel Rios 4 (Ronald Hernandez 1) 90’
Misconduct Summary:
ATL – Stian Gregersen (Yellow Card – Dissent) 37’
New England Revolution: Aljaž Ivačič; DeJuan Jones, Xavier Arreaga (Dave Romney 81’), Henry Kessler, Nick Lima (Brandon Bye 67’); Matt Polster ©, Ian Harkes (Jonathan Mensah 82’), Noel Buck; Dylan Borrero (Andrew Farrell 62’), Esmir Bajraktarević; Giacomo Vrioni.
Substitutes Not Used: Henrich Ravas, Tommy McNamara, Jack Panayotou, Ryan Spaulding, Bobby Wood.
Atlanta United FC: Brad Guzan ©; Brooks Lennon (Ronald Hernandez 89’), Stian Gregersen, Derrick Williams (Tyler Wolff 80’), Luis Abram, Caleb Wiley; Bartosz Slisz, Ajani Fortune, Tristan Muyumba (Saba Lobjanidze 62’); Daniel Rios, Xande Silva (Nicolas Firmino 89’).
Substitutes Not Used: Josh Cohen, Luke Brennan, Noah Cobb, Dax McCarty, Efrain Morales.
Full statistics available HERE.
