A defensive-lapse by the New England Revolution led to an early goal as Toronto FC earned their second straight win. After road victories against the Columbus Crew and DC United, the Revs were eager to return home and continue their fight for a playoff berth. Matias Laba ruined the homecoming when he stripped Jose Goncalves of the ball and found the back of the net in the second minute.
Fans hardly had time to settle in at Gillette Stadium before the game’s decider was scored. After stealing the ball at midfield, Laba completed an impressive run in which he beat Stephen McCarthy, Scott Caldwell and Andrew Farrell. The goal created a challenge for the Revolution as they now had to find an equalizer against a team that would be satisfied with a 1-0 result.
“We gave them a gift in the first two minutes and it’s always tough to climb back like that,” Lee Nguyen said. “We fought hard, tried to put ourselves in a position to tie in the first half and try to get a goal. It just wasn’t our day today.”
The Revs certainly had their chances to get on the scoreboard. In the 13th minute, Dimitry Imbongo collected a Juan Toja pass and forced Joe Bendik to make a save. The rebound fell to Diego Fagundez who beat the goalkeeper but not Ashtone Morgan. Fagundez had another prime opportunity 34th minute when the teenager looked to have a clear shot on goal after Imbongo nodded down a ball sent in by Farrell. High pressure from Bendik and Doneil Henry forced a weak shot from Fagundez that was cleared off the line by Richard Eckersley.
“We just didn’t get that slice of luck to get us back in the game,” Chris Tierney commented. “I think if we score in the first half and it gets back to 1-1, then we’re in decent shape again, but chasing the game is not a position you want to be in.”
The Revs, who finished the game with 17 shots and 63.7% of the possession, began to get desperate as they game wore on. In the 74th minute, the squad converted to a 3-4-3 when Chad Barrett replaced McCarthy. Imbongo committed a handling offense in the 88th as a way of trying to get the ball to Nguyen for the equalizer. Still looking for a way to breakdown the Toronto defense, Fagundez attempted a stoppage time side volley that went wide of the goal.
“It was just the way of Toronto’s game plan,” Nguyen remarked. “They were happy to come out with 1-0. It’s just unfortunate that we gave a goal up early and that fell right into their game plan. It’s always tough to breakdown a team that plays 11 men behind the ball like that.”
The Revs will hope to learn from Sunday’s mistakes since they are still in playoff contention with 12 games left in the season. One thing that the squad will hope to improve on is their efforts during the opening minutes since the team has conceded early goals in their last two games.
“We’ve got to look at the way we’re starting the games,” Tierney said. “It’s not good enough. We’ve talked about it. D.C. we concede early, again tonight and it’s just tough to chase games in this league. We need to be smarter to start the game, turn them around instead of try to play 50-50 ball in our own half.”
The Revs will have the chance to show their improvement on Saturday, August 10th when they travel to Sporting Park to face Sporting KC.
3 Observations and Revelations
1.I don’t like the formation change during desperate times. The philosophy behind the switch to a 3-4-3 is logical on paper since adding more attackers is likely to lead to more chances on goal. My problem with the change is that it creates a vulnerable backline that could concede on a quick counter. To combat that possibility, midfielders are sometimes more cautious about making a run forward. On Sunday, Caldwell was sometimes seen deeper than usual as a way of covering for the missing centerback. Instead of switching formations, it might have been more beneficial to exchange Imbongo for Barrett while pushing Caldwell further up. If Heaps doesn’t trust Caldwell in the attacking third, Dorman would have been a good final substitute.
2.The lack of true wingers might be this team’s biggest flaw. On the flanks, Fagundez and Saer Sene are afforded space to take on players and move towards goal. The arrangement clearly has benefits since Fagundez has eight goals and Sene has three. The main issue with the system lies in the lack of wide play. Fagundez and Sene are not the type of players to cross the ball in from the touchline, especially when they are inverted. This creates a very narrow Revolution attack that can easily be thwarted by overcrowding the center. The best way to combat this tactic is to get the ball wide. While Tierney and Farrell have had some success as attacking outside backs, the team could use more outside midfielders.
3.You have to finish your opportunities. Tempo-Free Soccer recently posted an interesting chart that showed the Revs as the third most lethal team in MLS in relation to shots taken per goal scored. The team’s 8.64 average placed them just behind the Montreal Impact (8.06) and the Vancouver Whitecaps (7.97). The game against Toronto defied the statistic as the Revs failed to convert on any of their 17 shots. TFC was certainly playing defensive but to only put four of those shots on frame and none in the back of the net simple isn’t good enough.
(image courtesy of Kari Heistad)
