FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – “It’s probably the biggest game of the year so far.”
“We have to take the next game like a final.”
“We go into this Saturday and look at it like a first-round playoff game.”
“For us, it should be a must-win game.”
No matter how you phrase it, one thing is abundantly clear: Saturday night’s meeting between the New England Revolution (7-7-8, 29 pts.) and Philadelphia Union (8-11-3, 27 pts.) is a massive clash for both sides, as the Revs enter the weekend with a two-point lead over the Union for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Kickoff from Gillette Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m., with NBC Sports Boston televising the match and streaming the action live on their web site and mobile app. Radio listeners can catch the call in English on 98.5 The Sports Hub, and in Portuguese on 1260 AM Nossa Radio USA.
Elizabeth Pehota and Jeff Lemieux will break down the starting lineups and storylines on Revolution Pregame LIVE, streaming on the Revs’ official Facebook page at 7 p.m. ET, while Revolution Postgame Live with Brad Feldman, Paul Mariner and Naoko Funayama will begin immediately after the final whistle on NBC Sports Boston.
Matt McCarthy and former Revolution midfielder Clyde Simms will handle postgame duties on 98.5 The Sports Hub, taking calls for 30 minutes after the final whistle.
Fans attending the match are encouraged to bring short-sleeved boys’ t-shirts, sized 7-8 and above, for donation to Cradles to Crayons. Collection bins will be located at all Gillette Stadium gates, and those who donate will receive an “I Donated” pin courtesy of Saturday night’s presenting sponsor, Santander.
Fans are also encouraged to stay after the final whistle on Saturday night to cheer on the athletes participating in the Special Olympics Unified match, which will feature the Revolution’s Unified team (Special Olympics Massachusetts) against the Union’s Unified team (Special Olympics Pennsylvania). That match will begin shortly after the first-team match, and fans are asked to congregate in The Fort to cheer on the athletes.
Current Form: Revs aim to capitalize on rare home game; Union confident after midweek win
Last weekend’s 3-3 draw in Orlando snapped the New England’s first losing streak of the season at three games, but it was an unsatisfying result as the Revs saw leads of 2-0 and 3-2 slip away, including in the third minute of stoppage time when they conceded from a set piece for the fourth time in the past four games.
HIGHLIGHTS: Revs and Orlando City SC trade goals in wild affair in Florida
For the third time in the past month head coach Brad Friedel was largely pleased with his side’s performance despite the result, but lamented mental lapses at key moments as the Revs again dropped critical points.
“I thought we set up our trap very nicely and created a lot of opportunities, so very pleased in that regard,” Friedel said. “Again, it’s just attention to detail stuff … There were a lot of positives to take out of the Orlando game, and we’re very much looking forward to the Philly game.”
WATCH: Training Report: Set pieces, new arrivals, and a critical clash with Philadelphia
Good performances are important, but particularly at this stage of the season, points are paramount, and the Revs know that they’ll need to start turning their positive play into positive results if they hope to make a run in the postseason come November.
“We could’ve really distanced ourselves in the standings, but we didn’t,” said goalkeeper Matt Turner. “Now we go into this Saturday and look at it like a first-round playoff game. It’s huge. Philly’s two points behind us in the standings, so we know what this game means to us, especially playing them twice in three weeks.”
WATCH: Three Numbers That Matter | Revs vs. Philadelphia Union
The Union will arrive in Foxborough on a high after advancing to the U.S. Open Cup final midweek, cruising to a 3-0 semifinal win over the Chicago Fire thanks to a brace from Cory Burke and a C.J. Sapong goal.
That continued Philadelphia’s recent offensive resurgence, as they’ve scored eight of their 29 goals this season in the past four league matches, including a pair of road wins over the Fire and Houston Dynamo.
Overall the Union are 10-6-1 in their last 17 games in all competitions following a rough start to the year.
Past Meetings: Trend of multi-goal, shutout victories dates back almost three years
Each of the last five regular-season meetings between the Revs and Union has resulted in a multi-goal, shutout victory for one of the sides, with Philadelphia victorious on four of those occasions.
Most recently the Union claimed a 2-0 win in this year’s season opener at Talen Energy Stadium, where the Revs were hampered by a pair of red cards, including an early ejection for Antonio Delamea. Sapong scored the Union’s second goal in that match, giving him five goals in his last five appearances against New England.
The only recent meeting in which Sapong didn’t score was the Revolution’s 3-0 win in their last encounter at Gillette Stadium, where Kei Kamara (x2) and Juan Agudelo were on the board last July.
Injury Report: Machado debuts in Orlando; Mancienne still awaiting P-1 Visa
Newcomer Cristhian Machado made his MLS and Revolution debut last weekend at Orlando City Stadium, playing the final three minutes of the Revs’ draw. With another week of training under his belt, he could be ready to play a larger role this weekend at Gillette Stadium should the situation call for it.
Fellow newcomer Michael Mancienne will not be available this weekend, however, as he continues to await the U.S. P-1 Visa that will allow him to officially join his new club.
Otherwise, Chris Tierney (torn ACL) is the only name on the Revolution’s injury report.
Final Thoughts: Friedel says Revs have “absolutely nothing to panic about”
“I’ve been involved in football for a long, long time. These sorts of things happen. They happen to the best teams in the world,” Friedel said of the Revs’ five-game winless run. “We’re playing well, so I’ve approached things no differently than I did on day one.
“There’s absolutely nothing to panic about here, at all. The players are fully focused. We have a good team. The players need to realize maybe sometimes how good they are, and focus for the 90-plus minutes.
“I’m sure we’re going to have a host of wins to see out the rest of the season and hopefully we’ll have a good run in the playoffs.”
