To conclude a convoluted week, the New England Revolution welcomed Philadelphia to Gillette Stadium. It was a win at Cincinnati followed by an Open Cup exit at the hands of NYCFC in extra-time. Now, the Union may be the leading team in the Eastern Conference, but they were dominated in this one. Gustavo Bou scores on his return to the starting XI but that was the only Revolution chance converted.
Gustavo Bou Scores Amongst a Plethora of Missed Chances From the Revs
The Revs Concede Late Once Again
Defensive woes have previously been at the fore for the Revolution so far this season. It was another poor goal to give away, but they looked particularly good going forward. Yet another Omar Gonzalez error was the root of evil for New England, coming not long after Gustavo Bou scored from the penalty spot. Gonzalez’s skewed clearance went straight to Mikael Uhre and he did the rest.
There is growing concern among the fanbase regarding the aging Gonzalez, Bruce Arena bringing him in the off-season seeming to be a flawed decision. Midfielder Sebastian Lletget’s assessment of the situation is as follows: “There’s been positives, but the trend is we leak goals. We just can’t hold that lead for whatever reason.”
Meanwhile, Arena said that “we’re shooting ourselves in the foot a bit.”
At this point Omar Gonzalez is just making everyone’s point. No one wants to dogpile on a central defender. But it’s mistake after mistake at this point. Jon Bell has spent long enough on bench purgatory. #NErevs
— Julian Cardillo (@JulianCardillo) May 29, 2022
Along with this calamitous error, the Revs took twenty-two shots in this one. Only four of these may have been on target, but Lletget was still full of praise for Jamaican international goalkeeper Andre Blake: “He’s one of the better goalkeepers in the league. He’s always there. He does well for that team and that’s why they are top of the table.” There was a consistent threat for New England going forward through the likes of Carles Gil and Lletget, but Gustavo Bou scores their only goal of the game.
New England are Unable to Make the Most of Their Chances Against Philly
As has already been mentioned, it was a case of being wasteful in front of goal. Adam Buksa has been the star man for the Revolution so far this season and his absence was felt. He has an ongoing streak in front of goal but was allowed to miss this game so as to join up with the Polish national team. This isn’t the first time this has happened and so the discontent from supporters over allowing this to happen is certainly understandable.
I’m told that Adam Buksa has played his last game for the #NERevs. The summer transfer window opens in France on Jun. 10. pic.twitter.com/3xIceglFv5
— Seth (@SethMan31) May 29, 2022
Dylan Borrero made his home debut in this one and as well as expressing his excitement about this, the Colombian mentioned that this was a missed chance. “I was very, very happy to debut in front of the home fans here at home. But I’m a little sad about the result, the tie. We had some chances to score a little more and win this game,” Borrero said. The three points were there for the taking but it ended honors even against the conference-leading Union.
Gustavo Bou Scores on his Return to the XI in the Place of Adam Buksa
A number of Revolution players have spent time on the sidelines this season due to injury. From Andrew Farrell to Henry Kessler, Matt Turner to Gustavo Bou, Arena has been without some key players. Gustavo Bou scores on his return to the starting XI though he saw 45 minutes against Cincinnati last weekend but this was his first start since the CCL exit at the hands of Pumas. Borrero, who has spoken very highly of La Pantera since arriving, said that he is “very happy for him” regarding this return to action and the score sheet.
Uno más para el cuaderno 📓💪 pic.twitter.com/W8cG8asAuA
— Gustavo La Pantera Bou (@gustavobouok) May 29, 2022
Gustavo Bou scored the Revolution goal from 12 yards out after Borrero forced a Jack Elliott handball in the box. It was then Uhre who netted for Philly as a result of that howler from Gonzalez. This was a second MLS goal for the Dane since he joined from Brondby in his home country. Only Julian Carranza (4) and Daniel Gazdag (7) have outscored him in a Union shirt in 2022 to date.
The obvious positive of this draw for the Revs is that Gustavo Bou scores his first goal of the season. The Argentinian forward is one of seven New England men with a single goal to their name and as a team, they could have done with a few more at Gillette. All in all though, a draw against the high-flying Philadelphia Union is far from a bad result.
