FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – With four MLS All-Star call-ups to his name, Carles Gil is now one of just four New England Revolution players to receive that many selections to the league’s summer showcase (along with Shalrie Joseph, Taylor Twellman, and Matt Reis). This year, the standout midfielder was chosen by All-Star head coach, Nico Estévez, and traveled to Austin, Texas to represent the Revolution against Liga MX’s finest on Wednesday night.
“It’s always difficult [to be chosen] in my position, with many good players there. But I think it means I’m doing good things,” he explained after receiving the news. “For me, what’s always important is the group. Trying to win is the best way to then improve as an individual player. I’m trying to be the best Carles, not for me, but for the group, for my team.”
Gil is a well-deserved All-Star, as he’s led the charge for the Revolution since arriving in Foxborough in 2019. This season, Gil has a total of 15 goal contributions with eight goals and seven assists. In total, Gil has recorded 47 goals and 80 assists in 180 career MLS games, claiming the Revolution’s all-time assist record earlier this year.
On Wednesday night, Gil made it clear why he deserved to be competing in Austin. Coming on in the 61st minute, Gil clocked 29 minutes of play in central midfield.
From the moment he stepped onto the All-Star pitch, the Spaniard controlled the center of the field. It was a scene familiar to Revs fans when Gil worked his way around Liga MX defenders in the 80th minute and played a key pass, sparking the sequence leading to the critical third goal, sealing a 3-1 victory for the MLS squad.
Gil wasn’t the only Rev who found a win in the Lone Star State this week, as All-Star nods were given to players across the organization. Revolution II midfielder Cristiano Oliveira and Revolution Academy forward Josh Macedo traveled to Austin to compete in the MLS NEXT All-Star game, while Liam Wise (Special Olympics Massachusetts) and Remy St. Germain (Unified Partner) also represented New England in the Unified All-Star match.
As a true leader, Gil showed up to support everyone who represented the Revolution in Austin, and even found himself on the hook for a steak dinner after promising 17-year-old Oliveira a celebratory meal if he scored a goal for the MLS NEXT East All-Stars. Naturally, Oliveira delivered by opening the Eastern Conference team’s tally with a goal at the end of the first half. Gil may be an All-Star on the pitch, but it’s moments like this that show he’s a star off the field, as well.
With a tight turnaround, Gil is now back in Foxborough just two days later to take on CF Montréal at Gillette Stadium. The match will mark Gil’s seventh game in just 20 days, but if there is anyone who can handle so many minutes, it’s him.
“He has played almost every minute of every game, if you can believe that, at his young age. He’s incredible. He’s a machine this year, performing extremely well, staying healthy, and working really well on both sides of the ball. His data has never been higher,” head coach Caleb Porter said of the Revolution captain.
Currently 11th in the Eastern Conference table, New England need to stack wins if they want to secure a playoff place by the end of the season. With just 10 games remaining after Friday night, the Revolution will lean into the skill of their All-Star to help steer the team back into contention. In the meantime, Porter was happy for Gil to take time outside of regular season play to have fun and enjoy football.
“It’s a week to get away from the season, get away from the grind and the pressure and where we’re at, and just enjoy to this point how he’s done, reflect on that, and pay tribute to that. Then, we go again,” Porter explained. “We’ve got a lot of season left. We have 11 games, that’s 33 [possible] points. We’re going to try to win every one. We probably won’t win them all, we probably don’t need to win them all, but we’re going to try to.”
