MLS Regular Season | Match #13
New England Revolution vs. Toronto FC
Wednesday, July 7 | 7 p.m. ET
Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, Mass.

Watch: TV38, myRITV, CoziTV
Listen: 98.5 The Sports Hub (English), WBIX 1260 Nossa Radio (Portuguese)
Revolution Kickoff (6:30 p.m. ET)
- Pregame coverage on TV38
Revolution Pregame Live (6 p.m. ET)
- Facebook, YouTube, revolutionsoccer.net

CURRENT FORM

New England Revolution
1st in Eastern Conference (7-2-3, 24 pts.)
Last Result | 2-2 draw at Columbus Crew

Tajon Buchanan had the first one-goal, one-assist performance of his career and Gustavo Bou stretched his goal-scoring streak to five straight appearances as the Revs raced out to a 2-0 lead on Saturday in Columbus, but the Crew – buoyed by a crowd of 20,000+ in the first-ever game at Lower.com Field – battled back for a 2-2 draw.

The first-place Revs have now picked up at least one point in five of their seven road games (2-2-3), but they’ll also be eager to return to Gillette Stadium, where they’re a perfect 5-0-0 on the year and where they’ve outscored their opponents 10-4.

Toronto FC
14th in Eastern Conference (1-8-2, 5 pts.)
Last Result | 7-1 loss at D.C. United

Toronto FC will be looking to bounce back from the worst loss in club history as the Canadian side suffered a 7-1 defeat on Saturday night at D.C. United. It was TFC’s sixth straight loss as they’ve slipped to the bottom of the MLS standings, conceding a league-worst 27 goals in 11 matches.

TFC – who parted ways with head coach Chris Armas on Sunday and put assistant coach Javier Perez in charge for Wednesday – continue to make their base in Orlando, playing their home games out of Exploria Stadium. Circumstances of COVID-19 have prevented Toronto from playing a match at BMO Field since last September.

KEY PLAYERS

Revolution center back Andrew Farrell
While head coach Bruce Arena has rotated between Jon Bell and Henry Kessler for the past five games, their center back partner has remained a constant. Andrew Farrell is one of two Revolution field players – along with captain Carles Gil – to play every minute through the first 12 matches.

Farrell – the most veteran presence on New England’s backline at 29 years old – will be a key voice in the coming weeks as Matt Turner departs for the Concacaf Gold Cup, leaving goalkeeping duties to Brad Knighton and Earl Edwards Jr. for the month of July.

Toronto FC midfielder Michael Bradley
Gold Cup call-ups will leave TFC without several key players for the next month, but their captain and emotional leader Michael Bradley remains with the group. Bradley has played every minute of Toronto’s first 11 games and will fill a key leadership role as the Reds look to respond following Saturday’s demoralizing loss in D.C.

Operating in central midfield, Bradley will likely be part of Toronto FC’s plan to slow down Revolution playmaker Carles Gil, who leads MLS with 10 assists.

STATUS REPORT

Revolution
Matt Turner (United States) and Tajon Buchanan (Canada) both departed for Concacaf Gold Cup duty early this week, leaving the Revolution with some gaps to fill in the month of July. Veteran goalkeepers Brad Knighton and Earl Edwards Jr. will both be poised to step in for Turner – a frontrunner for MLS Goalkeeper of the Year – while head coach Bruce Arena has several attacking options to replace Buchanan’s production on the right wing.

Luis Caicedo remains the only player listed on the Revolution’s availability report with an injury as he continues to recover from surgery, while fellow central midfielder Wilfrid Kaptoum made his return to the field this past weekend with a substitute appearance in Columbus. Christian Mafla, meanwhile, has also returned to full training as he makes a push for minutes at left back.

Toronto FC
Five TFC players were named to Concacaf Gold Cup rosters – Ayo Akinola (Canada), Richie Laryea (Canada), Jonathan Osorio (Canada), Eriq Zavaleta (El Salvador) and Kemar Lawrence (Jamaica) – but it remains unclear whether all five will be unavailable on Wednesday. Toronto’s availability report only lists Osorio and Laryea as on international duty, with Zavaleta suspended.

Goalkeeper Quentin Westberg and forward Ifunanyachi Achara are both listed as out, while veteran defender Justin Morrow is questionable after missing TFC’s loss to D.C. United on Saturday.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

New England Revolution head coach Bruce Arena
“Well, I think when there's a coaching change, there's an initial injection of energy and commitment into a team. So, I think we'll see a team that’s really ready to play. We hear they're bringing back some players from the national teams to play in this game. So, they're putting everything into this game."

New England Revolution forward Teal Bunbury
“I think we have three great goalkeepers. Obviously, [Matt] Turner is unbelievable and he’s only getting better. But I think with Brad Knighton and Earl Edwards, I think they’re quality and I think they’re always pushing each other. I think as a goalkeeper, it’s tough. It’s almost like a quarterback, where you usually have QB1, and then the other guys – it’s tough to get reps here and there. But when your name is called, you need to be mentally ready. I think with Brad and Earl, I think they’re both mentally ready for whoever’s name is going to be called. I think they have a lot of experience and I think we have a lot of confidence in both of them.”

Toronto FC assistant coach Javier Perez
“The approach is simple. The team needs change. The team needs to stick together, but a lot of things are similar in everything, right? The formula is you do this in football, you do this together with the players, with the coaching staff, with the supporting staff. I have been clear that this is something that’s not about me, it’s not about one player, two players – we have to pull this off together.”

Toronto FC midfielder Michael Bradley
“In moments like this, there’s no choice but to try to pull together and find our way out of a really difficult situation. We’re the ones who got ourselves into it, and we’re the ones who are going to have to get ourselves out of it. There’s no magic answers, there’s no easy solutions. It’s just down to the people on the inside ready to work and ready to claw ourselves out of this one game at a time.”