ROBC Vol. 2 No. 3, Apr 7 2024
Source: revolutionsoccer.net
Okay, I’m not saying there were puffins circling the lighthouse at Gillette looking to nest, but it was a dark and rainy night in Foxborough, the kind of cold and drenching weather that left you chilled to the bone no matter how many waterproof and whatnot layers you had on. The Revs gutted out a win in miserable weather in front of a dedicated crowd of Revs fans. A smaller and equally wet group of Charlotte fans did their best to keep the Crown’s spirits up, but left town with zero points.
Numbers tell a story
Both teams entered the match with identical 0.9 Expected Goals.
By the end of the game, possession was 50%-50%, each team had attempted 528 passes (NE completed 81%, Charlotte 83%) and had 3 Shots on Target.
The big differences: 1. The Revs had 11 shots to Charlotte's 6. Charlotte had 6 Corner Kicks to New England’s 4.
Revs on Both Coasts Revs Match Takeaways
First Win of the Season - the lid is off. Hopefully this can help the Revs enter the last 10 minutes of play with consistently more drive and belief.
Reffing was consistent. Both teams benefited and suffered equally from calls.
Partway through the first half, the Revs were able to regroup and play more strategically, building from the back, rather than clearing and rushing the ball as a response to Charlotte’s pressure.
Revolution players responded well to setbacks in play, not showing their frustration, but keeping their eyes forward and looking to the next chances at scoring.
The Gil brothers are continuing to show chemistry. Barely 1 minute after Carles Gil received a yellow for dissent, he banged in a Nacho Gil shot rebound to put the Revs up for good.
Is Vrioni on the cusp of the 9? Vrioni had a few close headers at the goal, and also close header plays in an attempt to advance the ball. Some of those were clearly timing errors. He also had a chance at a tough angle shot in the 50’ that went off target. The weather was brutal…in better conditions, will Vrioni put these chances away?
Good subs: Kaye and Bajraktarević subbed in in the 87’/88’, and both brought good energy and made good plays to stymie the Charlotte attack.
Your Dunkin’ moment: Ravas owes Patrick Agyemang donuts. The Charlotte forward had two excellent chances to score, but couldn't get either one on target. If he had finished on those chances, the points literally go south.
Charlotte showed good sportsmanship Saturday night. They put excellent pressure on the Revs in the first half, only to concede a goal right before halftime. I am sure that was disheartening. At the end of the game, Ravas punted the ball high and far, and then the ref blew the whistle for end of time. As the ball came down toward him, Charlotte defender Adilson Malanda took a swing at the ball in frustration. As Charlotte left the field, they showed their appreciation to their fans, including forward Kerwin Vargas signing his cleats and giving them to a young fan.
Looking Ahead
The Revs travel down to Estadio Azteca to face Club América. Sounds like Porter will use this as an opportunity for development rather than advancing in the tournament. (To be fair, to advance they’d have to win by more than 4 goals after the first leg’s defeat. Probably not going to happen.) Hopefully this can be a productive and injury-free exercise.
The Revs face NYCFC next week, who, despite their equally cold start to the season, managed draws against Miami and Atlanta in their last two matches. NYC will let the Revs beat themselves if they let them.
The game will be in New York, which gives NYC an advantage - even though the field measures regulation, I think the angles and sightlines of the baseball stadium give the home team an edge.
The chances of the Revs walking away with three points will be greatly increased if they can keep the pressure on NYC and be more technical in the finish. NYC has strong defenders and a good young GK in Matt Freese, but don’t tend to clog the box as much as other teams when the ball is moving quickly.
Go Revs! Protect the Fort! Bring the Fight! Dump the Tea!
Revs On Both Coasts Slyde-ing Scale for Game 6
Category | Matt | Josh | Average |
Offense | 7 | O | 7 |
Midfield | 7.5 | N | 7.5 |
Defense | 8 | V | 8 |
GK | 7.5 | A | 7.5 |
Strategy/Coaching | 8 | C | 8 |
Team Composure | 8.5 | A | 8.5 |
Average Score on the Revs Slyde-ing Scale: 7.75/10 - same as last week, but after a win rather than draw.
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