FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – While the New England Revolution are pleased to still occupy first place in the Eastern Conference, they aren’t satisfied with how they have maintained their spot at the top.
New England has started out the season 7-3-3 through 13 games, however, in their past three matches the Revs have hit a minor blip in terms of results, going 0-2-1.
“I think overall we’ve done well,” said head coach Bruce Arena. “There are games where I think maybe we gave some points away – other games maybe where we had a break. I think at the end of all it, we’re maybe where we should be.
“We’ve made an awful lot of mistakes over the last month that we have to correct, so there’s plenty of time in training now.”
As the team realizes they have work to do in order to continue to stay at the top of the conference and be competitive among the best teams in the league, they are utilizing the break in games to their advantage.
“Obviously, the last three games we didn’t get what we wanted results-wise,” said assistant coach Dave van den Bergh. “[It’s] a good time for us to kind of go back to basics, kind of dot our i’s and all that kind of fun stuff, and get back into our winning ways and kind of get back into the organization – how we want to play, how we need to play, then try to see how we can go forward with the group that we have right now.”
As the team presses forward, they know that part of getting back to their winning ways is how they respond in the upcoming hectic stretch of six games in only 23 days, starting with a victory at Atlanta United on Saturday.
“Three points, that’s the mindset,” said Henry Kessler. “I think this is the longest run of games without a win for us, so we’re just hoping to get back in the winning column and get three points in Atlanta, and then go from there.”
With a hard look in the mirror, the Revs have had an honest conversation about how they can improve, and that comes down to the method in which they begin matches from the very first minute.
“I think guys are ready to kind of avenge these games that we know we should’ve played better,” said Teal Bunbury. “The big sticking point is how do we start these games? We’ve got to be better starting these games.
“We can’t let teams feel like they can stick in and stick with us throughout a full 90 minutes, so we’ve got to be tuned in and locked in, and most definitely you’ve got to learn from the past few results that just weren’t good enough for our group.”
With the last three games being the first minor setback of this season, how the team responds will be a true test of their character.
“Now it’s a matter of what kind of team are we?” said van den Bergh. “Are we going to be a team that is going to now play up to the level of a losing team, or are we going to get back to our winning ways and have that grit, and desire, and determination, and the really good soccer that we’ve demonstrated over the first 10 games, 12 games? That’s kind of been the message and it’ll be interesting to see how the boys respond.”
If the Revs can maintain their spot atop the Eastern Conference even when they aren’t playing to the best of their ability, the potential they could tap into when they improve their shortcomings is exponential.
The squad’s first opportunity to respond and truly demonstrate their charisma is at Atlanta United on Saturday at 5 p.m. (ESPN, ESPN Deportes).