FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – There’s been something of a different vibe in New England Revolution camp following last week’s 1-0 road triumph over New York City FC.
“It does a world of good,” said head coach Brad Friedel. “We've been playing well enough in a lot of these games over the last couple of months to get three points. The Orlando game, the LA Galaxy, the Portland game, the Minnesota game – we can go on and on about games that we should've gotten three points in and we didn't.
“Coming away from a game where probably we didn't deserve all three points [with a win] is a really good feeling.”
That critical victory in New York snapped the Revs’ nine-game winless run and handed the hosts their first home loss since September 2017, all while giving New England a renewed spirit ahead of a playoff chase through the final seven games of the regular season.
“I think it’s big,” said Andrew Farrell. “You’ve seen in the past with teams – Revs teams in the past, but also Seattle last year – you get hot at the end of the season and it can carry you into the playoffs.
“Obviously when you’re not doing well throughout the summer and then you get a tie and then a win in a tough environment, the boys’ confidence is up. The good vibes are kind of back, and it gives you a boost of confidence.”
With the nature of MLS, sometimes it only takes one game to turn the tables. As the Revs look to use this morale boost productively, they understand that the win against NYCFC is in the past and that the benefit is only as strong as their ability to carry the momentum forward to the next game.
“We’re not on too much of a high, we’re not on too much of a low – we’re kind of right in the middle,” said Kelyn Rowe. “We’re going to have to grind out again for the next eight weeks. It’s not going to be easy, and we know that.”
The task continues this weekend as the Revs head to Los Angeles FC for yet another road match, which will be the first-ever meeting between these two clubs. LAFC present several challenges for New England, including a strong midfield that has proven dangerous at Banc of California Stadium, as they only have one loss at home this season.
“We’re game planning this week to go in and give [LAFC] their second loss,” said Brad Knighton, who kept a clean sheet in goal against NYCFC. “Everyone was talking last week about New York City not having a loss at home, and then we went in there and disrupted that, so we’re looking to build off of that and see if we can give them their second loss.”
The Revs currently sit at eighth in the Eastern Conference (33 points), just three points back of the playoff line with one game in hand on the Montreal Impact. New England will look to make a postseason push through the next six weeks, starting with kickoff against LAFC on Saturday at 10:30 p.m. ET.
