MLS Regular Season | Match #6
New England Revolution vs. Philadelphia Union
Thursday, August 20 | 7:30 p.m. ET
Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, Mass.
Watch: NBC Sports Boston
Listen: 98.5 The Sports Hub (English), 1260 AM Nossa Radio USA (Portuguese)
Revolution Pregame Live presented by Dan O’Brien Automotive Group (6:45 p.m.)
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CURRENT FORM
New England Revolution
9th in Eastern Conference (1-1-3, 6 pts.)
Last Result | 1-0 loss vs. Philadelphia Union
It’s been just about four weeks since the Revs were eliminated from the MLS is Back Tournament with a narrow 1-0 loss to the Philadelphia Union in the Round of 16, and they’ll be eager to get another crack at their Eastern Conference foes on Thursday night in Foxborough.
All told it was a fairly successful stay for the Revs in Florida, where they went unbeaten in the group stage (1-0-2) and picked up five points towards the regular-season standings, notably conceding just one goal in the process and keeping their first two clean sheets of the 2020 season.
Philadelphia Union
4th in Eastern Conference (2-1-2, 8 pts.)
Last Result | 2-1 loss vs. Portland Timbers
Philadelphia also went unbeaten (2-0-1) in the group stage at MLS is Back, picking up seven points as they’ve emerged as one of the Eastern Conference’s most exciting teams. Brenden Aaronson continued to see his stock rise with a series of impressive performances, while Alejandro Bedoya and Jamiro Monteiro help form a dangerous trio in the midfield.
The Union’s run in Orlando ultimately ended at the semifinal stage, falling to the eventual champion Portland Timbers, 2-1, despite a furious fight-back in the closing stages.
KEY PLAYERS
Matt Polster
Officially signed back in early July, it’s been a long wait for Matt Polster to make his Revolution debut, but we’re likely to see it on Thursday night at Gillette Stadium. Head coach Bruce Arena has hinted at a major role for Polster in the Revs’ midfield, and said he expects the 27-year-old to see big minutes against the Union.
Expected to feature in a deeper-lying midfield role in New England, Polster will be tasked with winning balls, clogging passing lanes, and serving as a fulcrum in possession as the Revs build from the back.
Andre Blake
The only goalkeeper ever selected first overall in the MLS SuperDraft, Blake showed why throughout the MLS is Back Tournament, winning the Golden Glove as the competition’s top goalkeeper. The former University of Connecticut standout led MLS with 32 saves in Orlando, and an 86.5 save percentage.
Having scored just two goals at the MLS is Back Tournament, the Revs know that they’ll need to be sharp in front of goal on Thursday night to break the resolve of Philly’s stellar goalkeeper.
STATUS REPORT
Revolution
Carles Gil joined Luis Caicedo on the long-term injury list two weeks ago, as the Revolution’s captain and chief playmaker underwent surgery to debride his left Achilles tendon. Gil, last year’s MLS Newcomer of the Year, will be sidelined for 3-5 months as he recovers.
Partially in response to Gil’s absence, New England made a pair of moves earlier this week to add attacking depth in Kekuta Manneh and Tommy McNamara. Neither will be available on Thursday night, however, as they’ve entered the league-mandated quarantine period after arriving in a new market.
Philadelphia Union
Jim Curtin’s side is largely healthy ahead of their return to play on Thursday night, as only left back Kai Wagner is on the injury report, listed as questionable with a leg contusion.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
New England Revolution head coach Bruce Arena
“I don’t think this is redemption against Philadelphia. The game we played (at the MLS is Back Tournament) could’ve gone either way. I don’t think on the day we played particularly well, nor did Philadelphia, but Philadelphia made a play that made a difference in the game. Give them credit. They won the game and they did a good job in the tournament and advanced to the final four teams. Give them a lot of credit.”
New England Revolution midfielder Matt Polster
“It’s obviously a short spell with a lot of games. I’m ready for it. I think it’s going to be intense and I think it’s going to be tough. I think the sessions here haven’t been very easy whatsoever, so I think going into these games I’ll definitely be fit. It’s now just being able to recover quick enough to play the next game. I think that’s going to be the biggest thing for me. I am getting close enough to that 90-minute range and when those games come, I know I’ll be ready.”
Philadelphia Union head coach Jim Curtin
“They have a good team. We played them very recently, so I think both teams know exactly what the other is about and what they’re going to do, and it was a very tight game. It was a one play game where we had a great ball by Jamiro (Monteiro) and were able to break them down and finally get in behind them, and Sergio (Santos) finished the play off. It’ll be, again, a one play game, two good teams going at it, and we look forward to it.”
Philadelphia Union forward Kacper Przybylko
“I think it was a perfect time and also preparation for the season now, because the schedule is pretty the same like in Orlando. Every five days, there’s a game. We can also take a lot of confidence like we took there in this tournament. We won so many games, we played some great minutes, but now we want to do it for the entire 90 minutes, instead of like 60 minutes. Sometimes we played a great game, and the last 30 minutes were bad, so we want to just continue and be strong for the 90 minutes.”
