FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Another opportunity to get back to winning ways awaits the New England Revolution on Saturday night at Talen Energy Stadium, where the Revs will visit the surging Philadelphia Union.
Saturday night’s match is a classic six-pointer as the seventh-place Revs (7-9-8, 29 pts.) and fifth-place Union (10-11-3, 33 pts.) are separated by just four points in the Eastern Conference. A win in Philly would pull the Revs to within one point of the final playoff spot in the East.
Brad Feldman and Paul Mariner will have the call for NBC Sports Boston and 98.5 The Sports Hub, while Portuguese radio listeners can tune into 1260 AM Nossa Radio USA.
Matt McCarthy and former Revolution midfielder Clyde Simms will handle postgame duties on 98.5 The Sports Hub, taking calls for 30 minutes after the match.
Current Form: “Now or never” for Revs in crowded East; Philly keeps climbing
A “flat” first-half performance sunk the Revs last weekend at Audi Field, where they suffered a 2-0 loss to longtime rival D.C. United. That setback stretched the Revs’ winless run to seven games (0-5-2), and they’ll need a victory on Saturday night to avoid going winless in both July and August for the first time in club history.
READ: “It’s now or never” for Revs as they enter final 10 games of the regular season
Confidence remains high in Revolution camp – “We played really well in most all the games,” said head coach Brad Friedel – but there’s also a keen understanding of the situation’s urgency with just 10 games remaining on the regular-season schedule.
“I can only say that we need to put our heads together right now,” said center back Antonio Delamea. “It’s not time to point fingers. We need to sort this as a team and try to go back on the winning track if we want to reach the playoffs.”
Philadelphia are one of the teams New England are currently chasing in the playoff race as the Union have won four of their last six matches, including an impressive 2-0 victory over New York City FC last weekend at Talen Energy Stadium.
The midfield trio of Alejandro Bedoya, Borek Dockal and Haris Medunjanin is the driving force for Philly, and the Revs believe limiting that group’s influence will be the key to a successful Saturday night.
“I think if you can lock down Dockal, Medunjanin and Bedoya, then you get a stronghold on the game,” said Friedel. “I think the players that we have at this club can do exactly that. We limited their service to their front guys quite effectively in [the meeting two weeks ago]. It was set pieces that were our undoing.”
Past Meetings: Revs aiming to avoid season sweep against Union
This will be the third and final regular-season meeting between the Revs and Union this year, and New England will be aiming to avoid a sweep after dropping the first two contests.
A pair of red cards – including a first-half sending off for Delamea – hampered the Revs in a season-opening 2-0 loss in Philly, while the Union capitalized on a trio of set pieces to claim a 3-2 win at Gillette Stadium just two weeks ago.
Apart from those set pieces, however, New England felt they put together a strong performance in that match, and they’ll be looking to replicate much of that approach this weekend in Philadelphia.
“I think we match up well with them,” said Andrew Farrell. “We know their tendencies, we know what we can do to exploit (them), we know their weaknesses and we’ve got to do a better job than we did last time. I think we came out flat, gave up two early goals, and kind of dug ourselves a deep hole. I think if we don’t do that, we’ll have a good chance at getting three points.”
In order to get three points the Revs will have to snap a string of three straight losses at Talen Energy Stadium, where previously they’d won three straight between 2014 and 2015.
Injury Report: Mancienne continues to settle into his new surroundings
Michael Mancienne was thrust straight into the Revs’ lineup last weekend at Audi Field, starting alongside Delamea in central defense just four days after arriving stateside and with limited training time.
With more opportunities to get to know his new teammates – both on and off the field – Mancienne will get more and more comfortable with his new surroundings and with the Revolution’s playing style.
WATCH: Training Report: All the storylines from Revs’ camp as they prep for Philly
“He’s integrated pretty well,” goalkeeper Matt Turner said of the 30-year-old veteran. “He’s a leader out there. He’s really vocal and he’s got loads of experience, so as he gets more comfortable with our style of play, we’ll see him gel really nicely, because he’s quality on the ball, as well. He’s been a really nice addition so far.”
Final Thoughts: “One (win) can get you back into the mix”
“One (win) can get you back into the mix, especially against a team like Philly. We’re fighting for the same (playoff) spots right now, so it’s important,” said Farrell. “This next game is very important. We have nine more games after that one, but we have to take this first one.”
