FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – One week from now the New England Revolution will be in the midst of a grueling three-games-in-seven-days stretch that includes a pair of trips to Canada.
So today, they rested.
Head coach Jay Heaps opted to change up the training schedule this week, giving the players a rare Wednesday off to help prepare their bodies – and minds – for next week’s gauntlet.
“Obviously we’re focusing on one game at a time and we’ll keep the players focused on that one game, but you do have a few games in a week,” Heaps said. “So how we prepare this week in terms of the physical loads and preparation is going to detail going into next week.”
New England’s primary focus at the moment is Sunday evening’s nationally-televised meeting with Toronto FC (5 p.m. ET on ESPN2), a club perched just three points back of the Revs in the Eastern Conference. It will be the third and final meeting between the two sides this regular season.
But Heaps and his staff must also be cognizant of a midweek showdown with the New York Red Bulls – two of the league’s hottest teams will clash at Gillette Stadium on Wednesday night – and a return to Canada next Saturday for a meeting with the Didier Drogba-inspired Montreal Impact.
“We want to make sure that everyone stays on the same level, physically and mentally,” said center back Jose Goncalves, who has helped lead the Revs to three straight shutouts. “That’s why we will be doing stuff that we’re used to doing this week to prepare very well for the next game.”
If there was ever a decent time for the Revs to hit a three-games-in-seven-days stretch, it’s now. They’re well rested after playing just three games in the entire month of August, they’re largely healthy, and Jermaine Jones is back in the mix after wrapping up U.S. National Team duty on Tuesday night.
The tone for the all-important week will be set on Sunday evening at BMO Field, where the Revs have picked up points on their last five visits (2-0-3). A positive result there – supplemented by points at home against New York and in Montreal – could see the Revs push toward the top of the East by next week.
“It’s a big game,” said Goncalves. “We want to win games, game after game. We’re on a good road right now, so we don’t think about something else – only winning. That’s in everyone’s mind right now.”
