ORLANDO, Fla. (October 7, 2023) – The New England Revolution (14-8-10; 52 pts. – 5th in East) fell to Orlando City SC (17-7-9; 60 pts. – 2nd in East), 3-2, on Saturday night at Exploria Stadium. Revolution captain Carles Gil tallied his third two-goal performance in MLS, giving him a career-high 11 goals on the season, but New England’s comeback attempt fell just short in Florida.

After Orlando jumped out to an early advantage, finding the scoresheet in the 31st and 37th minutes, Gil got New England on the board with a left-footed shot from well outside the box that knuckled towards Orlando goalkeeper Pedro Gallese, who spilled it into the net. With the Revolution within a goal and rallying, Orlando again extended its lead to two goals in the 45th minute, swinging momentum back to the hosts at halftime. 

Interim Head Coach Clint Peay deployed three changes at halftime, bringing on Gustavo Bou, Henry Kessler, and Emmanuel Boateng to help shift the match back in New England’s direction. In the second half, Gil was denied by Gallese from point-blank range as he stepped onto Boateng’s cross in the penalty area, but the Orlando goalkeeper made the stop to keep the deficit at two. Gil completed his brace in the 93rd minute with another long-range effort, this one deflecting off an Orlando City player to freeze Gallese and beat him to the near post. However, the final whistle sounded moments later, leaving no time for New England to complete the comeback. 

Gil’s first-half tally gave him double-digit goals for the second time in MLS, while his second strike set his new career high at 11 goals, most on the Revolution this season. The Spaniard is now the first player in team history with multiple 10-goal and 10-assist seasons. Gil’s 25 goal contributions are also a new personal best and the fourth most in a season in club history. He joins Taylor Twellman (2002, 2005) as the only Revolution players to record at least 24 goal contributions in two different seasons.

Mark-Anthony Kaye and DeJuan Jones both appeared on the scoresheet with the assists on Gil’s goals. Kaye has helped create goals in two of the last three games, while Jones’ seven assists this season tie his career high. Tonight’s match also saw the return of defender Henry Kessler, who entered as a substitute in the 46th minute to mark his first MLS appearance since April 8. Seeing his first action since a hamstring injury that required surgery, the fourth-year center back completed 95 percent of his passes in the match. 

New England is on the road for the final time in the regular season next weekend to face Nashville SC (12-10-10; 46 pts. – 7th in East) at GEODIS Park on Saturday, October 14 at 8:30 p.m. ET. Watch the match for free on Apple TV in English and Spanish. Listen to the Revolution’s local radio calls on 98.5 The Sports Hub (WBZ-FM) and 1260 AM Nossa Radio in Portuguese. The Revolution will then close the regular season at home on MLS Decision Day against the Philadelphia Union on Saturday, Oct. 21. (6:00 p.m. ET). 

POSTGAME NOTES

• Entering the final two games of the regular season, New England can still finish as high as third in the Eastern Conference as they sit three points behind Philadelphia (third place) and two points behind Columbus (fourth place), with a game on hand on both teams, in the battle for homefield advantage in the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs. 
• Carles Gil’s 11 goals are most on the team and a new career high, surpassing his 2019 total (10). 
• The 2021 MLS MVP has now reached the scoresheet in five of the last six games, with four goals and two assists. In eight career games played against Orlando City SC, Gil has tallied five goals and six assists. 
• Gil, who logged his third career two-goal performance, now owns 11 goals and 14 assists this season, becoming the first player in Revolution history to record multiple 10-goal and 10-assist seasons.
• Gil is the fourth different player to record 25 goal contributions in a season, the first since Lee Nguyen in 2014. He joins Taylor Twellman (2002, 2005) as the only Revolution players to record at least 24 goal contributions in two different seasons. Twellman holds the club single-season record with 29 (2002). 
• DeJuan Jones has distributed an assist in three consecutive matches for the first time in his MLS career, as he has now matched a career high with seven this season, a club record for a defender he shares with Brandon Bye. 
• Mark-Anthony Kaye recorded his third assist of the season on the opening tally, his second in the last three games.
• Henry Kessler collected his first appearance since suffering a right hamstring injury on April 8, entering the match as a halftime substitute. 
• Tomás Chancalay suited up for his eighth consecutive MLS start since joining New England in August. The 24-year-old logged team-highs in duels won (8) and tackles won (3), along with five shots.

GAME CAPSULE
New England Revolution 2, Orlando City SC 3
October 7, 2023 – Exploria Stadium (Orlando, Fla.)

Referee: Allen Chapman
Assistant Referees: Brian Poeschel (AR1), Ryan Graves (AR2)
Fourth Official: Chris Penso
Video Assistant Referee: Alejandro Mariscal
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Diego Blas
Weather: 83 degrees and clear
Attendance: 24,440

Scoring Summary: 
ORL – Duncan McGuire 11 (Dagur Thórhallsson 3) 31’
ORL – Facundo Torres 14 (Iván Angulo 8) 37’
NE – Carles Gil 10 (Mark Anthony-Kaye 3) 42’
ORL – Iván Angulo 5 (Rafael Santos 4) 45’
NE – Carles Gil 11 (DeJuan Jones 7) 90+3’

Misconduct Summary: 
NE – Tommy McNamara (Yellow Card – Hard Foul) 84’

New England Revolution: Earl Edwards Jr.; Matt Polster (Christian Makoun 82’), Dave Romney, Omar Gonzalez, DeJuan Jones; Noel Buck (Emmanuel Boateng 46’), Mark Anthony-Kaye (Tommy McNamara 61’); Tomás Chancalay, Carles Gil ©, Nacho Gil (Henry Kessler 46’); Giacomo Vrioni (Gustavo Bou 46’)

Substitutes Not Used: Tomáš Vaclík; Esmir Bajraktarević, Ryan Spaulding, Bobby Wood

Orlando City SC: Pedro Gallese; Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, Dagur Thórhallsson; Wilder Cartagena, Cesar Araújo (, Felipe Martins 85’); Facundo Torres (Martin Ojeda 66’), Mauricio Pereyra © (Júnior Urso 66’), Iván, Angulo (Gaston Gonzalez 85’); Duncan McGuire (Ramiro Enrique 66’)

Substitutes Not Used: Mason Stajduhar, Antonio Carlos, Michael Halliday, Luca Petrasso

Full statistics available HERE.