FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – A billboard facing south on Route 1 just outside Gillette Stadium proudly declares that Jermaine Jones is here. Very soon, that will be true.
Jones, who has spent recent weeks working with rehab specialists from the U.S. Men’s National Team as he recovers from sports hernia surgery, is slated to arrive in Foxborough early Thursday morning.
That will put the influential midfielder in town ahead of Saturday afternoon’s meeting with the San Jose Earthquakes, but head coach Jay Heaps said the Revolution’s first step is to evaluate exactly where Jones is physically, and that process will likely stretch into next week.
“We’re excited to get him back,” said Heaps. “He’s been doing rehab for the last couple weeks, so it’s going to be getting him with our medical staff and making sure that he’s ready to go at some point in the next week or so.”
Jones’ return could provide a huge boost for the Revs, who’ve started 0-2-1 with zero goals scored for the second straight year. Following his arrival last August the Revs went 9-1-2 when Jones was in the starting lineup, with the only loss coming in extra time against the LA Galaxy in MLS Cup.
Alston, Bunbury progressing as they recover from injury
While the Revs look forward to the impending return of Jones, they’re also eagerly anticipating smooth recoveries for Kevin Alston and Teal Bunbury, both of whom missed the home opener through injury.
Alston remained indoors to receive treatment on his ailing right hamstring on Tuesday morning, but Bunbury has progressed to outdoor work as he joined teammates for warmups and passing drills for the first time since spraining his right shoulder in the season opener a little more than two weeks ago.
Heaps has Revs focused on spacing as they continue quest for goals
The defensive performance in last Saturday’s 0-0 draw with the Montreal Impact was precisely what the Revs were hoping for upon their return home. They controlled large portions of the proceedings and limited the visitors to just two relatively tame shots on target.
But goals eluded New England for a third straight game, and while Heaps is satisfied with the quality of chances the Revs have created in the early going, he sees room for improvement in one critical area.
“You want to take positives from the game, but you also have to correct some things,” he said. “It’s a little bit about our spacing and correcting the spacing at the right times.”
Heaps said the chemistry amongst the attacking group is “coming along,” but noted that they’ve put an increased emphasis on spacing to avoid becoming static and congested in the final third.
“It’s not a lack of trying; it’s a little bit of getting in each other’s way,” Heaps said. “The spacing is the key. The chemistry will come when the spacing is right.”
Agudelo says Revs “need to be a little bit more selfish” in the attacking third
Juan Agudelo believes the cure for New England’s scoring woes may be simple: shoot more.
While the Revs generated a series of clear-cut chances against both New York City FC and the Impact, they’ve registered only 28 shots, second-fewest amongst teams to have played three games. Their six shots on target are tied for fewest in the league with the Houston Dynamo and Montreal.
“We’ve created chances,” Agudelo said. “I still feel like we need to be a little bit more selfish in maybe having a shot. Maybe it’ll be a little bit of a deflection and it goes in or something. But we’ve got to shoot more, even if it’s from distance.”
Agudelo noted that the Revolution’s first breakthrough last season was an own goal by San Jose Earthquakes defender Victor Bernardez. The fortuitous strike snapped a similar three-game scoreless streak and set the Revs on a tear in which they scored 21 goals in their next nine games.
And which team visits Gillette Stadium on Saturday afternoon? Those very same Earthquakes.
