Our New England Revolution has gone seven games with out a win. Since we opened the month of July with a 2-0 win over NYRB we have suffered a series of one goal losses briefly interrupted by the only recent highlight, a tellingly barren highlight, of a 0-0 draw in Kansas City. Last weekend our one goal loss was a 2-1 result against Chicago. This week our Revs travel to Columbus hoping for a good showing and better results. As we discussed on this week’s #TRAP – The Rebel Alliance Podcast – New England technically hasn’t yet been eliminated from the MLS playoffs. Our chances are slim and teams like Chicago and Columbus that, earlier this season seemed beatable rivals for playoff positioning, are now making their push for the post-season. Even when signs point towards disappointment, future possibilities – a new addition, perhaps – offer glimmers of hope.
During the recent losing streak the refrain from the Revs has been about punishment for single mistakes. Earlier in the season the Revs claimed responsibility for lapses in concentration. That shift in attitude was apparent In their play on both Chicago goals. Clyde Simms lost his mark and AJ conceded a penalty that put us down early, 1-0. Whether a derth of resposibility or a punished mistake, it hurt. Our goal seemed made of perseverance – won’t win any style points, but style points don’t count and goals do. For their second goal Chicago just ripped us open while we were standing around instead of defending a throw-in deep in our own end. Ugly all around.
This week our Revs travel to Columbus. Federico Higuain might be a missing piece for the Columbus Crew. He is perhaps not enough to be THE missing piece, but Guillermo Barros Schellotto is not coming back. What Higuain has done is make other players around him better. He hasn’t improved their individual efforts so much as combined to make their counter attacks much sharper. Higuain’s efforts along with Eddie Gaven’s creative passing and runs off the ball, as well as Arrieta’s play at striker have been productive. In the last two games Higuain played a second half against Houston, recording an assist in their 2-2 draw, and then 90 minutes against Toronto where he picked up another assist and a goal in a 2-1 win. So, clearly, our Revs will be visiting a better team than the one that parked a big yellow bus in front of Gruenenbaum’s goal in Gillette for a 0-0 tie two months ago.
For the Revs to compete, or more than that, take home all three points from a victory, we will have to score. New England’s best chances to score will likely come from Saer Sene and Jerry Bengston. Lee Nguyen was upgraded from questionable on Tuesday to probable on Friday’s injury report. If he can contribute and Benny Feilhaber has earned his way back into the starting lineup there is no reason to think that our Revs cannot generate scoring opportunities. I believe that Clyde Simms and Ryan Guy will join them in the midfield. Our regular starters on defense, Tierney, McCarthy, Soares, Alston, and goal keeper Matt Reis will likely round out the starting line-up. The goals wouldn’t have to be pretty to improve the mood and confidence around this team. Fans were relieved by last week’s goal and scoring again would be another step away from one of this season’s droughts. I imagine that scoring would also feel good to the players, too.
The news this week, and perhaps throughout the weekend, may not even be this game. The return of Juan Toja to MLS, the Revs top spot in the allocation order, and GM Mike Burns’ statements to MLSSoccer.com that some kind of decision would be made by Monday mean that a late season addition to the Revs’ roster is on his way. A trade could surface, so Toja may not be the man joining us for the final stretch this season, and 2013. If he does take up the red flag of New England then would his talented left foot mean that Lee Nguyen would move, Saer Sene, or even Benny Feilhaber? I suspect that there won’t be sufficient value returning in the trades that we are offered to send Toja elsewhere. However this unfolds, we’ll talk about it on the podcast and you’ll read about it here next week. In the meantime, though, we have a game to play.
This is likely to be a telling weekend for several reasons. Juan Toja can improve this squad, through his play or in bringing value back to the Revs in trade. What if our front office uses this opportunity to keep Toja and trade a different player? That changes will arrive by our first practice next week also means that this game against Columbus offers an opportunity for our current crop of midfielders to remind us of their talents on their own. Line-ups, formations, and tactics are all aimed at earning results and a win here would certainly be a confidence boost. Sure, it would take a huge resurgence and probably winning every following game this season to make the playoffs, but we get to play each game one at a time.
Whatever happens on the pitch or in the lockerroom, next week we will be focused on preparing to beat Chivas USA in Shalrie Joseph’s first return in the colors of the opposition. Last week we broke a scoring drought. Silver linings and glimmers of hope are seductive precisely because they might be signs of a corner. We’ll see what lies on the other side of a few events this weekend. Maybe our Revs will turn a corner. Let’s grab all three points in Columbus this weekend and use a win as the backdrop for whatever player news we announce on Monday. C’MON YOU REVS!
(image courtesy of Getty Images)
