This past Saturday night’s road test against Orlando City SC wasn’t quite a must-win game, but it certainly didn’t help the New England Revolution in their push for the playoffs to lose to the Lions. That result dropped the Revs down to the bottom of the East, six points out of the wild card spots with seven matches left to play, and it makes this coming midweek clash with CF Montréal that much more critical.
Unfortunately, most of the other results from the weekend didn’t do New England any favors, either; aside from Miami’s more-or-less predictable win over Philadelphia with Lionel Messi back in the squad, every other outcome gave the Revs a steeper hill to climb. They still hold at least one game in hand over their rivals – two, crucially, over Toronto FC and D.C. United in the two wild card spots – and six points is by no means an unassailable deficit.
A win over Montréal would give New England the chance to jump as high as 11th if other results go their way, given that they hold the advantage in the Total Wins tiebreaker over the four teams above them. Here are the other fixtures Revs fans should be looking out for Wednesday night, and the results that would help their team the most:
Wednesday, Sept. 18
Atlanta United FC (10th: 8-13-7, 31 pts.) vs. Inter Miami CF (1st: 19-4-5, 62 pts.)
Mercedez-Benz Stadium, 7:30 p.m. ET
Atlanta’s home loss on Saturday would have been more helpful for New England if it hadn’t meant Nashville leapfrogging the Revs on their way out of the Eastern Conference basement. Miami, meanwhile, are fully committed to doing Miami things for the foreseeable future, especially now that their Argentinian talisman is back up and running.
Once again, a win for the Herons seems like the most likely outcome and would aid the Revolution in their chase for the playoffs; and yet, once again, a win for the Herons would bring the Florida side three points closer to breaking New England’s points record. Maybe try to think of it more as an Atlanta loss than anything else.
New York City FC (6th: 11-10-7, 40 pts.) vs. Philadelphia Union (11th: 7-12-9, 30 pts.)
Yankee Stadium, 7:30 p.m. ET
Miami’s 3-1 win on Saturday came at Philadelphia’s expense, maintaining a three-point gap between the Revs and the Union. New York City FC, meanwhile, played D.C. United to a draw, falling to 6th in the division but graciously preventing the gap between the Revolution and a wild card spot from exceeding six points.
The Bronx Blues are slumping at exactly the wrong time from their point of view, and while most New Englanders would readily take pleasure in the failures of teams that call Yankee Stadium home (as they should), this is one instance where Revs fans will really want to see NYCFC turn things around and keep the Union in the East doldrums.
Toronto FC (8th: 11-15-3, 36 pts.) vs. Columbus Crew (3rd: 14-5-8, 50 pts.)
BMO Field, 7:30 p.m. ET
Columbus clinched a playoff spot on Saturday; Toronto did not. Columbus won Leagues Cup last month; Toronto did not. Columbus scored four goals the last time these two teams met; Toronto did not.
The Columbus Crew is very good at winning games, and even better at not losing games. These talents would serve them very well midweek against Toronto, who currently occupy the first wild card spot. Preferably a win over TFC, though a draw would be begrudgingly accepted. Please and thank you.
Orlando City SC (5th: 11-10-7, 40 pts.) vs. Charlotte FC (10-10-8, 38 pts.)
Inter&Co Stadium, 8:15 p.m. ET
With a trip to Charlotte just over the horizon, the Revs will need to view the Carolina club as one of their playoff rivals, particularly now that the Crown’s run of no wins in five (0-2-3) has put them in danger of dropping into the wild card spots. Orlando, on the other hand, are on a stellar run, most recently at New England’s expense, and the less said about that the better.
With the Lions’ win taking them up into fifth – admittedly only two points better than Charlotte – they have to be seen as the less threatening of these two sides, and as much as their performance on Saturday night stung from a Revs perspective, the Foxborough faithful will need to hope for a repeat out of OCSC midweek.
Nashville SC (14th: 7-13-8, 29 pts.) vs. Chicago Fire FC (13th: 7-14-8, 29 pts.)
GEODIS Park, 8:30 p.m. ET
Nashville decided on Saturday that eight league losses in a row was quite enough, thank you, and pulled out a 2-0 road win over Atlanta United. Chicago, meanwhile, surprised the league (or didn’t, for those who have come to recognize that nothing in this league is surprising) with a 2-1 home win against the New York Red Bulls. Both teams, as a result, jumped New England in the standings, and both now face each other on Wednesday night.
Pray for a draw. Light your candles, align your crystals, and manifest an own goal each from Wyatt Omsberg and Walker Zimmerman. Start a petition for both teams to earn zero points from this game. Save a kitten out of a tree and cash in the good karma. For the love of New England, direct all of the energy you can muster toward these teams tying this game.
