The New England Revolution have looked great in the past month and a half and are riding an eight-match unbeaten streak. However, the demons of the past reared their ugly heads last week. The Revs were up 2-0 on the Orlando City Soccer Club but ended in a 2-2 draw. Here is hoping this is an anomaly rather than a warning sign of things to come. An ambitious schedule over the next couple months means the Revolution will have to be firing from all cylinders rather than driving with shoddy brakes.
New England Revolution Haunted by Past Nightmares
Late goals hurt New England a lot last year. They just seemed to lose focus, and when the tide started turning the Revs caved. Much of this could be attributed to an incredibly young team that was struggling to find a cohesive identity. This was why Jermaine Jones was such an important addition late in the season. He provided the steel leadership to keep the team up in times of duress.
Last week though, even he had no answers.
The Revolution have made a number of changes to their defensive line which has resulted in some natural turmoil. The departure of AJ Soares to Norway has caused Andrew Farrell to take over the center-back spot. And while Will Packwood has been brought on for a trial this week is intriguing to say the least (For those that don’t know, he is a Mass. native, played on every USMNT level except for the senior team, has been with Birmingham City in England for the past eight years and is only 21 years old), the late game collapses seemed to be systematic last year and the fact that it happened again is a worrying sign.
Offensively, New England still has all the potential (keyword: potential) to be a juggernaut. They have Charlie Davies, who has scored four goals in the last four games, but the supporting cast hasn’t yet peaked. Lee Nguyen is still not his 2014 self, whether it is contract issues (likely) or something else. Juan Agudelo lost his cool multiple times against OCSC and was lucky to have not been ejected for some very unsportsmanlike tactics. And the combination of Kelyn Rowe and Diego Fagundez has not provided the high-octane offense New England is capable of.
So far the early offensive MVP of this season has been Teal Bunbury. He has played commanding offense and hustled on defense. However, as Toronto FC has learned many a time, all the offense in the world means nothing if you let in goals, especially late.
While there is cause for concern, it is important to know the Revolution are dealing with injuries and new additions. Darrius Barnes is now out for the season. Jose Goncalves is dealing with a nagging calf issues. London Woodberry has only a couple games under his belt thus far. The hope is when Goncalves returns, Jones will move back up to midfield to support Nguyen. We all know about the Jones CB experiment on the USMNT, but he has been exposed too often this season. He is a great defensive midfielder, but just an okay central defender. The roles while seemingly similar are worlds apart in roles and responsibilities. Jones is a much stronger midfielder than a defender, and a weak, Jones-less midfield was a reason defensive collapses often happened. Nguyen, Rowe and Fagundez are naturally much more offensive than defensive.
This lack of balance puts heavy strain on the defense. If everyone isn’t on their assignments, opportunities are created for the opposition. Given the next series of games, opportunities are going to have to be kept to a minimum for their competition. By putting players in their best positions, the Revs will have the best chance of shutting down opposing threats on goal.
The Revolution are two games into an unbelievably challenging 12 game veritable gauntlet. This week New England matches up against a very offensively potent Toronto and their next 10 games are against some of the leagues best, including DC, LA, Columbus, Vancouver and FC Dallas. This means the defense will have to hold against the trio of Bradley, Altidore and Giovinco; the duo of Keane and Zardes, and the offensive powerhouses that are Columbus, Vancouver and FC Dallas. If the D can not hold up, it will not be a pretty beginning of the summer in New England.
However, this is not the team of last year. All the young guns are a year more experienced, and Jermaine Jones is in for a full season. Head coach Jay Heaps has been rotating players every game to keep them fresh as the season progresses. The team is continually gelling but ownership of each and every role and assignment is mandatory now. If the team wants to be a perennial contender, with a great chance to be a dynasty, it starts in the back.
We will soon find out if the Revolution are the team we think they can be, or if the nightmares of the past will come back to haunt them. A greater focus on defensive responsibility and each player sticking to their assignment must be the priority. As for the offensive force-in-waiting and their title chances themselves, only time will tell if either are really as great as advertised.
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