MONTREAL (August 26, 2023) – The New England Revolution (12-5-7; 43 pts. – 3rd in East) were defeated by CF Montréal  (11-12-2; 35 pts. – 8th in East), 1-0, on Saturday night at Stade Saputo in the club’s return to MLS regular season play. Goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. collected a two-save effort in net as New England nearly held on for the clean sheet, though Montréal’s George Campbell broke the deadlock in the 86th minute with the deciding goal. 

New England dueled Montréal to a scoreless first half in a tightly contested battle. Midfielder and captain Carles Gil had the best chance of the half for either side when his long-range shot from near the halfway line bounced off the crossbar. Montreal came out with the edge in the second half and applied pressure late in the game. Despite an impressive defensive stand, Campbell eventually put the hosts in front with the late winner. The loss is New England’s only regulation defeat in its last seven games in all competitions. 

Midfielder Mark-Anthony Kaye logged his first MLS appearance in a Revolution uniform, while Argentinian attacker Tomás Chancalay, also acquired in the summer window, made his Revolution club debut with a 28-minute shift off the bench. Nacho Gil, who made three appearances in Leagues Cup, saw his first MLS appearance of the season. 

With multiple injuries impacting the backline, Omar Gonzalez stepped into central defense for his second start of 2023 campaign and logged a game-high six clearances. Meanwhile, Ryan Spaulding earned the start at left back and Matt Polster made his first start at right back since 2020. 

The Revolution return home for two matches next week at Gillette Stadium, beginning on Wednesday, August 30 at 7:30 p.m. against Eastern Conference rivals New York Red Bulls (FREE on Apple TV). New England will then close the week on Saturday, September 2 with a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff in its first meeting with Austin FC (MLS Season Pass on Apple TV). 

MATCH NOTES

• Matt Polster made his first start at right back for New England, slotting in for the injured Brandon Bye. Polster’s last start at right back came with Rangers in March of 2020, with his last MLS run at right back in March of 2018.
• Earl Edwards Jr. earned his first MLS start since June 17, recording two saves in tonight’s match.
• Tomás Chancalay entered the match in the 62nd minute, marking his Revolution debut and first MLS appearance. The 24-year-old forward from Argentina joined New England on loan from Racing Club and made one previous appearance with Revolution II. 
• Mark-Anthony Kaye played the full 90 minutes in his first league appearance with the Revolution, and fifth overall start with the club, since joining New England via trade on July 13.
• Tonight’s starting lineup featured two Homegrown Players in Damian Rivera and Noel Buck. Rivera logged 62 minutes and recorded one shot in his first MLS start since February 25.
• Nacho Gil entered the match in the 88th minute to record his first regular season appearance of 2023.
• Omar Gonzalez made his second start of the season and registered a game-high six clearances in central defense. 

GAME CAPSULE
New England Revolution 0, CF Montreal 1
August 26, 2023 – Stade Saputo (Montreal, Quebec)

Referee: Ted Unkel
Assistant Referees: Cory Richardson (AR1), Ryan Graves (AR2)
Fourth Official: Fabrizio Stasolla
Video Assistant Referee: Younes Marrakchi
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Tyler Wyrostek
Weather: 65 degrees and cloudy 
Attendance: 19,619

Scoring Summary: 
MTL – George Campbell 1 (Lassi Lappalainen 1) 86’

Misconduct Summary: 
NE – Matt Polster (Yellow Card – Hard Foul) 25’

New England Revolution: Earl Edwards Jr; Dave Romney, Omar Gonzalez, Matt Polster, Ryan Spaulding; Carles Gil ©, Ian Harkes (Nacho Gil 88’), Mark-Anthony Kaye, Noel Buck (Tomás Chancalay 61’), Damian Rivera (Emmanuel Boateng 61’); Giacomo Vrioni (Bobby Wood 72’)

Substitutes Not Used: Jacob Jackson, Esmir Bajraktarevic, Christian Makoun, Tommy McNamara, Ben Sweat

CF Montreal: Jonathan Sirois; Zachary Brault-Guillard, Joel Waterman, George Campbell, Gabriele Corbo; Samuel Piette, Bryce Duke, Nathan-Dylan Saliba, Mathieu Chioniere (Lassi Lappalainen 67’), Kwadwo Opoku (Chinoso Offor, 88’); Jules-Anthony Vilsaint (Sunusi Ibrahim 67’)

Substitutes Not Used: James Pantemis; Fernando Alvarez, Ahmed Hamdi, Ousman Jabang, Matko Miljevic, Victor Wanyama

Full statistics available HERE.