FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Coming into the 2024 edition of Leagues Cup, New England Revolution head coach Caleb Porter understood the challenge before him and his team: compete against some of the best teams on the continent with a squad missing all three of its Designated Players, among other key assets. Porter made no bones about how steep the mountain to climb would be, or about how important the ensuing 11 MLS regular season matches would be once the tournament wrapped up, but nonetheless came in with an eye to take each game one at a time and make it as far as they could.
Now, the obvious takeaway from Friday night’s game against New York City FC at Gillette Stadium will be the outcome, the Bronx Blues eking out a place in the Round of 16 on penalties after a 1-1 draw in regulation. But for Porter, Friday night’s game spoke to something deeper; this Revs side, depleted as it was, went the distance with one of the best teams in the league, having landed on the business end of crucial refereeing decisions, and then went seven rounds in one of the more quietly impressive penalty shootouts you’ll see. To the coach, it spoke to the team’s character.
“You saw, our guys gave everything,” Porter said after the match. “Lot of guys out – I couldn’t be more proud. It’s another game where we’re playing a really good team, and I thought we fought them tooth and nail the entire match. I can’t ask for anything more out of my guys. I just feel like they got the short end of the stick tonight.”
That sort of performance, and that sort of character, shone brightly not just against New York City, but for weeks now, and put the Revs on a run of four straight matches undefeated in regulation. In many ways, the centerpieces of that run have been young players breaking into the starting XI, and, what’s more, proving on the field that they were deserving of the opportunity.
“It’s great to see, you know, a lot of young guys out there, a lot of Homegrowns playing,” Porter said. “That was really good for their development. And they’re executing, and they’re working so hard.” He paused a moment, giving a wry chuckle. “I mean, honestly, those 11 guys and subs gave everything they had today.”
Midfielder Matt Polster, a regular starter who has stepped up in his role as vice-captain with Carles Gil among the injuries, also recognized the heart on display from players up and down the roster during this difficult stretch.
“The willingness to fight for each other and for the club is obviously paramount,” Polster said. “When you look at who we’ve asked to step up in these games and to play significant minutes, these guys have stepped in and played really, really well. Bobby [Wood] hasn’t played much in the league and he stepped up significantly throughout these matches. Jack [Panayotou] as well. I’m sure there are other guys, but those guys obviously stand out to me. It’s amazing when you look at how many injuries we have, all the guys that are injured would be on the 23-man roster. So, it’s quite a feat.”
But as important as the performances have been overall, the showing against NYCFC was special in its own way. While speaking with reporters, Porter fielded a question about what had made the Bronx Blues such a tough nut to crack, what they were doing that tactically frustrated his Revolution. The coach pushed back on the question’s premise.
“I think we frustrated them as much as they frustrated us today, honestly,” he said. “That's a very talented team; I said it going into the game. They are full strength. That's their top group. We have three DP’s out and a young DP out. We are not playing our top group and I thought it was an even game. I thought we really limited their chances. They had a bit of the ball, they always will. But again, my eye of the game, based on what we wanted to do, I thought we did it. The only goal they score is off a penalty that I thought was really soft … That's no disrespect to New York City. I think they're a great team with really good players, and Nick [Cushing] is a good coach and they have a good staff, but I didn't think they did anything that really scared us today.”
That fearlessness will continue to be important as the season enters its final stretch. With their Leagues Cup campaign ended, the Revs will have a couple weeks to rest before MLS play picks back up on August 24 in Montréal. From that point onward, though, the team’s full focus will be on qualifying for the playoffs, hopefully bolstered by the return of a few key pieces. For his part, Porter likes his team’s odds.
“If there’s kind of a silver lining in this – it’s hard to think about that now – but we have a little more time now to reset and work on some things before our last 11 games,” Porter said. “I like our chances to get in the playoffs if we keep fighting and playing the way we’ve been playing.”
