FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (October 5, 2024) – The New England Revolution (9-19-4; 31 pts.) were defeated by D.C. United (10-13-10; 40 pts.), 2-1, on Saturday night in front of 44,110 fans at Gillette Stadium, the club’s second-largest standalone home crowd for a regular season home game. With Saturday’s result, New England has been eliminated from playoff contention.
The visitors began the night on the front foot, stunning the Revolution with two tallies in the opening eight minutes with goals from Pedro Santos and Major League Soccer’s leading scorer, Christian Benteke. New England eventually settled into the match, limiting United’s attacking chances for the rest of the half, but went into the break trailing by two goals.
Forward Dylan Borrero entered the match for New England to start the second stanza, immediately adding a spark to the Revolution attack as he forced D.C. goalkeeper Alex Bono into a save in the 50th minute. Borrero and Nacho Gil tied for the team lead with three shots each. Esmir Bajraktarevic also came on as a substitute and contributed two shot attempts in his 29-minute shift.
The Revolution lost captain and attacking talisman Carles Gil midway through the second half to injury, with Ian Harkes entering the match in his place. Harkes helped cut the deficit in half against his former club by generating an own goal in the 75th minute, playing a cross that ricocheted off D.C. defender Matti Peltola into the net.
An equalizer seemed inevitable as New England piled on the pressure in the closing stages. A pair of set piece opportunities from just outside the penalty area nearly found their targets. However, the final whistle before the Revolution could find a second goal. The result dropped the Revs’ home record to 5-8-4 in the regular season as the loss takes them out of postseason contention.
New England will hit the road for the final two regular season games, beginning next Saturday, October 12 at Columbus Crew. The 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Lower.com Field is available to watch on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app in English and Spanish. Listen on 98.5 The Sports Hub (WBZ-FM) and 1260 AM “Nossa Radio USA”.
MATCH NOTES
- Saturday's crowd of 44,110 marks the fourth-largest home attendance in club history, and the second-largest crowd for a standalone regular season match, trailing only this season’s sellout match against Inter Miami CF on April 27.
- New England’s average attendance this season was 29,262 fans per game, a new club record and third best in MLS at the conclusion of Matchday 37.
- Prior to the match, Carles Gil was announced as the club’s 2024 Team MVP, as voted on by fans. Gil wins the club honor for a record fourth time in his six-year Revolution career.
- In addition, Andrew Farrell was honored as the team’s Humanitarian of the Year, his third timing winning the accolade.
- Dave Romney made his 75th appearance for New England across all competitions, logging 90 minutes.
- Esmir Bajraktarević recorded two shots and two key passes in a 29-minute outing. His 28 appearances this season are a career high.
- Xavier Arreaga equaled his MLS-career high with his 27th appearance of the regular season.
GAME CAPSULE
New England Revolution 1 vs. D.C. United 2
October 5, 2024 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
Referee: Alexis Da Silva
Assistant Referee: Gianni Facchini
Assistant Referee: Kathryn Nesbitt
Fourth Official: Guido Gonzales Jr.
Video Assistant Referee: Kevin Stott
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Mike Kampmeinert
Weather: 62 degrees and clear
Attendance: 44,110
Scoring Summary:
DC – Pedro Santos 3 (Martín Rodriguez 5, Mateusz Klich 13) 3’
DC – Christian Benteke 23 (Lucas Bartlett 4) 8’
NE - Matti Peltola (Own Goal) 75’
Misconduct Summary:
NE – Luca Langoni (Yellow Card – Hard Foul) 54’
DC – Pedro Santos (Yellow Card – Dissent) 75’
New England Revolution: Aljaž Ivačič; Peyton Miller (Dylan Borrero 46’), Xavier Arreaga, Dave Romney, Brandon Bye (Tim Parker 60’); Alhassan Yusuf (Nacho Gil 60’), Matt Polster; Emmanuel Boateng (Esmir Bajraktarević 60’), Carles Gil © (Ian Harkes 67’), Luca Langoni; Giacomo Vrioni.
Substitutes Not Used: Earl Edwards Jr., Andrew Farrell, Mark-Anthony Kaye, Bobby Wood.
D.C. United: Alex Bono; Lucas Bartlett, Pedro Santos, Aaron Herrera; Jared Stroud (Jacob Murrell 63’), Gabriel Pirani (Dominique Badji 63’), Martin Rodriguez (Boris Enow 56’) Ted Ku-DiPietro (Cristian Dajome 46’), Mateusz Klich (Garrison Tubbs 85’); Christian Benteke ©.
Substitutes Not Used: Luis Zamudio, Russell Canouse, David Schnegg, Hayden Sargis, Luis Zamudio
