FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (October 21, 2023) – The New England Revolution (15-9-10; 55 pts. – 5th in East) defeated the Philadelphia Union (15-9-10; 55 pts. – 4th in East), 2-1, on Saturday night at Gillette Stadium to secure the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference entering the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs. The victory sets up a rematch of the Revolution and Union in the best-of-three Round One series; the complete Round One playoff schedule is expected to be announced on Sunday. 

Gustavo Bou recorded a first-half brace in his 100th MLS appearance, while goalkeeper Jacob Jackson made two saves to secure his first MLS win in front of 41,355 fans. The Argentine’s two goals gave New England its 12th home win to tie the club’s single-season record. With a 12-1-4 mark at home during the regular season, the Revolution set a new single-season attendance record in 2023 with an average of 23,940 fans per match, among the top 10 attendance figures in MLS. 

In the regular season finale, Philadelphia opened the scoring when Julian Carranza poked a loose ball into an open net in the 16th minute, following a miscommunication between Jackson and Dave Romney. Only nine minutes later, Gustavo Bou responded with his first goal since July 15, tallying from the penalty spot after Philadelphia was called for handling in the box. Bou secured his brace just before halftime as Noel Buck fed a pass to Carles Gil, who sent Bou in on goal for his 50th tally across all competitions with New England. Bou’s 44 regular season goals are fifth most in club history, and the second most by a Revolution player in his first 100 games. 

For Gil, the helper gave him 15 assists in a season for the second time in his career. He finishes the campaign with 26 goal involvements, tied for second most in team single-season history and the most by a Revolution player since 2014. The three-time Revolution Team MVP also claimed the team’s 2023 Golden Boot award, finishing the regular season with a team-leading 11 goals. Since the start of 2019, he is one of only four MLS players with 10 goals and 15 assists in a season. 

Revolution defender Dave Romney played 90 minutes on Saturday, making him the only outfield player to play every minute of the 2023 MLS season. He is the second Revolution player to have a perfect service record across a 34-game regular season, the other being José Gonçalves in 2013. 

New England will open the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs with an away match at Philadelphia in the best-of-three Round One series. Tickets for the Revolution’s home playoff game will go on sale on Monday, Oct. 23, after the complete Round One schedule is revealed on Sunday. Watch every Revolution match in Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV in English and Spanish, or listen to the Revolution’s local radio calls on 98.5 The Sports Hub (WBZ-FM) and 1260 AM Nossa Radio in Portuguese. 

TEAM NOTES

• New England finished the season with a home record of 12-1-4, matching the club record for home wins set in 2017 and 2021.
• The Revolution became the 17th team in MLS history to compile 40 points at home – a new club record.
• The Revolution welcomed a season-high 41,355 fans to Gillette Stadium for Saturday’s match, the first time New England has surpassed 40,000 fans at a match since Oct. 17, 2015. 
• This year’s average attendance of 23,940 sets a new single-season club record, surpassing the previous record set in 1997 (21,298). New England’s average attendance in 2023 will finish as one of the top 10 in the league. 
• New England is unbeaten in its last 20 matches (17-0-3) when leading at halftime, including a 9-0-3 mark this season.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES

• Dave Romney became the second player in Revolution history to play every minute of a 34-game season (Jose Goncalves – 2013). 
• Romney is the only outfield player to play every minute of the 2023 MLS regular season. He also played the entirety of the Revolution’s Leagues Cup campaign (four games). 
• Gustavo Bou made his 100th MLS regular season appearance on Saturday, starting and playing 89 minutes and marking the occasion a pair of goals. The brace was Bou’s second in MLS, his last coming on July 25, 2021. 
• Bou now owns 50 goals across all competitions, including 44 in regular season play, both the fifth most in club history. 
• Bou’s 44 goals are second most by a Revolution player through his first 100 games played, behind only Taylor Twellman (65). 
• Carles Gil provided the service on Bou’s second goal, giving him 15 assists for the season. Gil’s league-best 47 assists since the start of 2021 are tied for the fifth-most helpers over a three-season span in MLS history (Marco Etcheverry & Carlos Valderrama – 1997-99).
• Since 2019, Gil is one of four MLS players to record 10 goals and 15 assists in a season, joining Carlos Vela (2019), Luciano Acosta (2022), and Thiago Almada (2023). 
• Noel Buck was credited with a secondary assist on Bou’s second tally, his second helper of the campaign. 
• Matt Polster notched his 100th start for the Revolution across all competitions.
• DeJuan Jones returned to the matchday squad after missing last Saturday’s match while on international duty with United States, making his 125th regular season appearance.
• Jacob Jackson earned his first MLS win in his second start – also his MLS home debut. 

GAME CAPSULE
New England Revolution 2, Philadelphia Union 1
October 21, 2023 – Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)

Referee: Tori Penso
Assistant Referees: Kathryn Nesbitt (AR1), Ryan Graves (AR2)
Fourth Official: Luis Arroyo
Video Assistant Referee: David Barrie
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Joshua Patlak
Weather: 58 degrees and rain.
Attendance: 41,355

Scoring Summary: 
PHI – Julián Carranza 14 (Mikael Uhre 4) 16’
NE – Gustavo Bou 6 (Penalty Kick) 25’
NE – Gustavo Bou 7 (Carles Gil 15, Noel Buck 2) 42’

Misconduct Summary: 
PHI – Nathan Harriel (Yellow Card – Hard Foul) 7’
PHI – Damion Lowe (Yellow Card – Handball) 24’
PHI – Kai Wagner (Yellow Card – Dissent) 24’
PHI – Julián Carranza (Yellow Card – Dissent) 90+2’

New England Revolution: Jacob Jackson; Ryan Spaulding, Dave Romney, Andrew Farrell, DeJuan Jones; Noel Buck, Matt Polster, Tommy McNamara; Carles Gil ©, Tomás Chancalay; Gustavo Bou (Justin Rennicks 90+3’).

Substitutes Not Used: Earl Edwards Jr., Emmanuel Boateng, Nacho Gil, Omar Gonzalez, Mark-Anthony Kaye, Christian Makoun, Giacomo Vrioni, Bobby Wood.

Philadelphia Union: Andre Blake; Damion Lowe, Jack Elliott, Jakob Glesnes; Kai Wagner, Jack McGlynn (Leon Flach, 75’), Alejandro Bedoya ©,  Nathan Harriel; Daniel Gazdag; Mikael Uhre (Jesus Bueno 75’), Julián Carranza.

Substitutes Not Used: Joe Bendik; Tai Baribo, Chris Donovan, Olwethu Makanya, Quinn Sullivan, Jeremy Rafanello, Joaquin Torres.

Full statistics available HERE.