Cincinnati, OHIO – The New England Revolution (5-1-2; 17 pts.) defeated FC Cincinnati (1-4-1; 4 pts.), 1-0, at TQL Stadium on Saturday afternoon to secure a third straight win entering the international break. Forward Adam Buksa scored his third goal in as many games with a 70^th-minute header, while Carles Gil notched his MLS-leading fifth assist to give New England its first road win of the season. Goalkeeper Matt Turner backstopped the Revolution to the club’s third clean sheet of the season with a four-save effort.

New England’s high-powered attack collected season highs in shots (26) and corner kicks (13), the Revolution’s highest shot total in a single game since July 2019. The club’s 21 first-half shots set a new team record for shots in a single half. Buksa led the attack with a game-high seven shots and netted his fourth goal of the season – his 10^th in MLS regular season action. The 24-year-old Polish striker has scored in three consecutive games, the longest active streak in MLS, and has netted game-winners in two of the last three matches. Meanwhile, Gil generated 10 chances in the game, only two shy of his club-record of 12. He recorded seven chances created from set play in today’s match, one short of the MLS single-game record.

Defensively, the team’s third shutout gives New England a streak of 272 minutes without conceding a goal from open play. Turner, who collected the 19^th clean sheet of his career, is now 2-0-0 all-time against FC Cincinnati with shutout efforts in both performances. Matt Polster completed 95.6 percent of his passes in central midfield and recorded team highs in possessions gained (11) and tackles (5). Henry Kessler returned the starting lineup alongside Andrew Farrell to anchor the backline in central defense, while right back Brandon Bye contributed to the offense with a career-best five shots along with three key passes.

New England enters the three-week international break in first place in the Eastern Conference after eight games played. The club returns to action with a road match at New York City FC on Saturday, June 19. The contest will kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET at Red Bull Arena on TV38, myRITV, CoziTV, 98.5 The Sports Hub, and in Portuguese on WBIX 1260 AM Nossa Radio USA.

POSTGAME NOTES
New England Revolution 1, FC Cincinnati 0
May 29, 2021 – TQL Stadium (Cincinnati, Ohio)

• The New England Revolution (5-1-2, 17 pts.) defeated FC Cincinnati, 1-0, on Saturday afternoon in the third-ever match between the two sides and the first at the newly opened TQL Stadium. Adam Buksa scored the game-winner on a 70^th-minute header with service from Carles Gil.
• Today’s victory was New England’s third in a row and the club’s first away win of the season. The club’s away mark improves to 1-1-2 (5 pts.) to go with a perfect 4-0-0 home record.
• The Revolution’s five wins this season are level with Seattle Sounders FC for the most in MLS. New England and Seattle are currently tied atop the MLS table with 17 points each, with Seattle set to play its eighth game on Sunday night.
• The Revs’ 21 first-half shots set a new club record and tied for the second most by any MLS team in the opening half since at least 2011, per Opta.
• Adam Buksa has now scored in three straight games, the longest active streak in MLS and tied for the league’s second longest scoring run this season. Buksa now owns a team-high four goals this season and 10 goals for his regular season career. He finished the night with a personal-best seven total shots.
• Carles Gil recorded his MLS-leading fifth assist of the season, to go with 10 chances created on the night as he adds to his league lead in the category. Gil’s 10 key passes are his second most in a single game, two shy of his own club record of 12 (July 9, 2020 vs. Montreal), and tied for the fourth most in a single match by any MLS player since Opta began tracking the statistic in 2011.
• Gil is the fourth player in the last decade to record at least seven chances created from set play in a game. The record for a single game is eight, held by Portland’s Diego Valeri.
• The Revolution are unbeaten in 21 games across the regular season and playoffs when Carles Gil records an assist (16-0-5).
• New England earned a season-high 13 corner kicks in the match, three off the club record of 16.
• Bruce Arena’s record with New England improves to 21-11-18 with today’s win, and his career mark improves to 223-132-107.  
• Andrew Farrell registered his 247^th appearance with New England, surpassing Chris Tierney for fourth-most games played in Revolution history. Farrell, Carles Gil, and Matt Turner have played every minute of the season thus far.
• Matt Turner logged his third clean sheet of the season, the 19^th of his MLS career. Turner, who tallied four saves today, is now 2-0-0 all-time against FC Cincinnati with clean sheets in both performances.

• Matt Polster made his eighth straight appearance to open the year and completed 95.6 percent of his passes (43-of-45) on the night, including a 96.3 accuracy rate in the opposing half. He led New England with 11 possessions gained and eight tackles.
• Brandon Bye contributed to New England’s attack with a career-high five shots, including two on goal, and three key passes. On the defensive end, Bye recorded two tackles, two clearances and one interception.
• Edward Kizza and Revolution II graduate Jon Bell appeared in today’s match as substitutes. Kizza played a career-high 25 minutes, while Bell made his fourth straight appearance and his first off the bench.
• Bruce Arena’s Starting XI featured three changes from last weekend’s win against New York. Henry Kessler, Tommy McNamara and Adam Buksa started in place of Jon Bell, Wilfrid Kaptoum and Gustavo Bou.

GAME CAPSULE

REFEREE: Dave Gantar
AR1: Peter Manikowski, AR2: Jeffrey Swartzel
4th: Silviu Petrescu
Video Assistant Referee: Sorin Stoica
Attendance: 11,000
Weather: 52 degrees and cloudy

Scoring Summary:
NE – Adam Buksa 4 (Carles Gil 5) 70’

Misconduct Summary:
CIN – Caleb Stanko (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 9’
NE – Tajon Buchanan (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 33’
NE – Henry Kessler (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 66’
CIN – Yuya Kubo (Yellow Card- Hard Foul) 69’

New England Revolution: Matt Turner; DeJuan Jones, Andrew Farrell, Henry Kessler, Brandon Bye; Matt Polster, Tommy McNamara; Arnór Traustason (Edward Kizza 65’), Carles Gil ©, Tajon Buchanan (Jon Bell 77’); Adam Buksa

Substitutes Not Used: Brad Knighton, A.J. DeLaGarza, Scott Caldwell, Emmanuel Boateng, Maciel, Wilfrid Kaptoum, Teal Bunbury

FC Cincinnati: Kenneth Vermeer; Gustavo Vallecilla, Geoff Cameron, Joe Gyau, Ronald Matarrita; Yuya Kubo (Brandon Vazquez 77’), Luciano Acosta ©, Caleb Stanko (Alvaro Barreal 70’); Allan Cruz, Brenner, Jurgen Locadia

Substitutes Not Used: Edgar Castillo, Haris Medunjanin, Nick Hagglund, Kamohelo Mokotjo, Zico Bailey, Przemysław Tytoń, Isaac Atanga