New England Revolution II will host FC Cincinnati at Gillette Stadium on Sunday afternoon in their first of two meetings this season. The match kicks off at 2:00 p.m. ET and will stream on MLSNEXTPro.com. Revolution II Season Memberships and single-game tickets are on sale now. For more information, email tix@revolutionsoccer.net or call 1-877-GET-REVS.
Revolution II is coming off a 3-1 win against Rochester New York FC, their first victory of the 2022 season. Midfielder Michel Costa da Silva kicked off the scoring, notching the first goal of his career. Defender Sean O’Hearn also recorded his first professional goal with a free kick in first-half stoppage time, while Homegrown midfielder Damian Rivera scored his third goal in two games to cement New England’s win. Goalkeeper Jacob Jackson earned the start in net for the second match in a row, making eight saves on nine shots.
“We’ve been off to a good start, two wins, but I think we kind of need to move past those two wins and just keep looking at the next game, next game, and keep trying to get results,” defender Ben Reveno stated in the team’s weekly press conference.
The home opener also saw two professional debuts with 17-year-old Academy product Jack Panayotou and Brazilian midfielder Ryan Lima both coming on as subs in the second half. Panayotou became the 20th Academy player, and Ryan the 36th player overall, to make their professional debuts with New England’s developmental team to date.
During the team’s bye week, Rivera notched his second career MLS appearance with the first team against Inter Miami CF. The Rhode Island native entered as a substitute in the 83rd minute, spelling fellow Homegrown Player Justin Rennicks. Rennicks had featured extensively for Revolution II over the past two seasons and was able to break through for his first career MLS goal in the 11th minute against Inter Miami.
“It’s fantastic,” Head Coach Clint Peay said of Justin Rennicks notching his first MLS goal. “He's worked really hard and obviously it's never easy for a player to be a first team player, have to go back down to the second team, but he always came back down to us with the right attitude, worked hard, was coachable. To see him finally get not only the start, but his first goal was fantastic.”
WHAT TO WATCH FOR AGAINST FC CINCINNATI 2:
- Revolution II extending their point streak to three games with a win or draw to open the season.
- Goalkeeper Jacob Jackson making his third professional start.
- Midfielder Michel hitting 1,800 minutes played with a 14-minute appearance.
- Academy graduates Esmir Bajraktarevic and Meny Silva both making their third consecutive starts of the season. Bajraktarevic has logged 90-minute performances in each of the season’s first two games.
- Homegrown midfielder Damian Rivera returning to the second team after earning his second MLS appearance on April 9. Rivera has scored three goals in the first two MLS NEXT Pro games.
- New England adding to the 36 players – and 20 Revolution Academy products – who have made their professional debuts with Revolution II thus far.
