WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 24, 2024) – The New England Revolution (0-1-0; 0 pts) fell to D.C. United, 3-1, on Saturday night at Audi Field in the 2024 MLS season opener. The Revolution went down to 10 men in the first half when forward Giacomo Vrioni was dismissed following a second yellow card. After entering the halftime intermission down 1-0, Carles Gil knotted the score with the club’s first goal of the new MLS campaign with a curling effort from distance in the 67th minute. The hosts sealed the victory with a pair of second-half goals from striker Christian Benteke, who netted all three tallies for D.C. United.

Head Coach Caleb Porter, managing his first league contest with New England, made three changes to his Starting XI from Wednesday’s win in Leg 1 of Round One of the Concacaf Champions Cup. A pair of Homegrown midfielders collected starts tonight in Arlington, Mass. native Noel Buck and winger Esmir Bajraktarević. In his 88-minute performance, Bajraktarević earned a game-high seven fouls. Veteran center back Jonathan Mensah made his Revolution debut on the backline, while goalkeeper Henrich Ravas made his MLS debut tonight.

Gil highlighted tonight’s match with a MLS Goal of the Week candidate, curling the ball into the top left corner of the net to pull New England level. The 2021 MLS MVP guided New England’s attack with three shots on goal in tonight’s contest. Midfielder Matt Polster collected the assist on the tally.

New England returns home for two games next week. First, on Thursday, Feb. 29, New England welcomes CA Independiente to Foxborough for the second leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup Round One tie, with New England leading 1-0 on aggregate. The 8:15 p.m. ET kickoff airs nationally on FS2 in English and TUDN in Spanish. Then, on Sunday, March 3, the Revolution will host Toronto FC for the club’s 2024 MLS home opener. The 2:00 p.m. ET kickoff at Gillette Stadium is available to watch on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV in English, Spanish, and French. Listen to the Revolution’s local radio calls on 98.5 The Sports Hub (WBZ-FM), with Brad Feldman and Charlie Davies on the call, and 1260 AM “Nossa Radio USA” in Portuguese.

MATCH NOTES

• The Revolution’s record against D.C. United shifts to 36-36-15 in the all-time series between the two MLS Original clubs. The defeat snapped New England’s three-game winning streak against D.C.
• Midfielder Carles Gil netted the first goal of the 2024 MLS season for New England in the 67th minute, converting on Matt Polster’s assist. Gil guided the Revolution’s attack with four shots, including three on target, and three chances created.
• Gil now owns four goals and six assists over 11 career games played against D.C. United.
• Midfielder Tomás Chancalay also provided a spark in New England’s attack, recording a team-high five shots, including two on target, in tonight’s match.
• Defender Jonathan Mensah, one of New England’s offseason acquisitions, made his Revolution debut tonight. The veteran defender logged three clearances over a full 90-minute performance.
• Tonight’s Starting XI featured two Revolution Homegrown Players in midfielders Esmir Bajraktarević and Noel Buck. Bajraktarević finished tonight’s match with a game-high seven fouls won over an 88-minute performance.
• Goalkeeper Henrich Ravas suited up for his MLS debut and made two saves.
• Forward Giacomo Vrioni exited the match in the 25th minute after being shown a second yellow card. Vrioni will miss next Sunday’s MLS home opener against Toronto FC.

GAME CAPSULE
New England Revolution 1, D.C. United 3
February 24, 2024 – Audi Field (Washington, D.C.)

Referee: Andrew Musashe
Assistant Referees: Alexander Arita (AR1), Shane Richards (AR2)
Fourth Official: Dimitar Chavdarov
Video Assistant Referee: Frank Anderson
Weather: 40 degrees

Scoring Summary:
DC- Christian Benteke 1 (Pedro Santos 1) 34’
NE- Carles Gil 1 (Matt Polster 1) 67’
DC- Christian Benteke 2 (Conner Antley 1) 72’
DC- Christian Benteke 3 (Aaron Herrera 1) 90+3’

Misconduct Summary:
NE- Giacomo Vrioni (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 12’
NE- Giacomo Vrioni (Red Card- Hard Foul) 25’
NE- Carles Gil (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 39’
DC- Pedro Santos (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 49’
DC- Jared Stroud (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 54’
DC- Kristian Flecther (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 77’
NE- Ian Harkes (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 90’

New England Revolution: Henrich Ravas; DeJuan Jones, Dave Romney, Jonathan Mensah, Nick Lima (Ryan Spaulding 88’); Matt Polster (Emmanuel Boateng 77’), Noel Buck (Ian Harkes 61’), Tomás Chancalay, Carles Gil ©, Esmir Bajraktarević (Nacho Gil 88’); Giacomo Vrioni

Substitutes Not Used: Earl Edwards Jr., Andrew Farrell, Tommy McNamara, Jack Panayotou, Bobby Wood

D.C. United: Alex Bono; Lucas Bartlett, Matti Peltola, Pedro Santos (Conner Antley 68’), Aaron Herrera, Christopher McVey; Jared Stroud (Jackson Hopkins 84’), Gabriel Pirani (Kristian Fletcher 74’), Ted Ku-DiPietro (Christian Dajome 72’), Mateusz Klich, Christian Benteke ©

Substitutes Not Used: Luis Zamudio, Matai Akimboni, Martin Rodriguez