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3 takeaways as the Revolution fall to New York City FC on penalty kicks in Leagues Cup
New England now looks to rescue its faltering place in the MLS playoff race.
The Revolution’s 2024 Leagues Cup run came to an end in a penalty kick shootout loss against New York City FC at Gillette Stadium on Friday night following a 1-1 draw over regulation time. New England now gets a two-week break until the regular season resumes with a matchup in Montreal on Aug. 24.
Once again bereft of virtually all of his top attacking players, Caleb Porter managed to coax a solid performance out of his available options. And had it not been for a pair of VAR decisions as well as a conspicuous missed opportunity in front of goal, the Revolution might have won in regulation time.
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Instead, the game dragged through the second half, proceeding directly to penalties — with no extra time, per Leagues Cup rules — and New England came up short when Mark-Anthony Kaye’s spot kick (the unlucky 13th of the shootout) hit the bar and bounced away.
Here are a few takeaways:
The understrength lineup managed to create 45 minutes of offense.
The Revolution began the game in what has become the standard 4-2-3-1. Given the continued absence of virtually every notable New England attacking player, Porter was left with another makeshift lineup that included zero Designated Players and regular central midfielder Ian Harkes deputizing in an advanced attacking midfield role.
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Both teams started slowly, managing only brief forays anywhere close to each other’s goal, generating comparatively little on offense over the opening 20 minutes.
The game jumped to life shortly before the half-hour mark, when it appeared the Revolution had taken the lead with all the suddenness of a bolt of lightning. Veteran striker Bobby Wood, who after barely featuring for months has gotten an extended run in the Starting XI over the last few weeks with Giacomo Vrioni out, pounced on a New York mistake following a speculative Emmanuel Boateng pass and lashed the ball into the net.
Unfortunately for New England, Wood had started the play in an offside position, negating the goal. Only a few minutes later, midfielder Matt Polster was belatedly called for a penalty after a VAR ruling judged that he had fouled New York midfielder Santiago Rodríguez in the box. The visitors promptly converted from the spot, and led 1-0.
Yet the Revolution managed a response, showcasing an ability to string passes together even without some of their regular starters. The equalizer came less than five minutes after New York took the lead. Wood capped a nice sequence that began with center back Xavier Arreaga carrying the ball into midfield, finding the veteran striker upfield with his back to goal.
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Wood passed back to Harkes, who found Brandon Bye out wide to the right. New England’s capable right back continued his post-injury climb back to form, striking a perfectly placed cross that swung around New York’s defense right onto the head of Wood, who didn’t miss from close range.
Despite Wood’s quality play for much of the first half, his performance was also defined by a difficult moment in the 45th minute, when he scuffed an absolutely perfect low cross from 16-year-old left back Peyton Miller. Placed right onto his foot in front of goal, Wood could only watch as the ball redirected wide of the target. It was a missed chance New England would rue.
The second half belonged to Aljaz Ivacic.
Following an even first half, the second half was defined by one-way traffic. New England mustered seven shots (three on target) over the first 45 minutes, but none for the remainder of the game.
New York, meanwhile, generated multiple scoring chances, failing to score only because of the quality work from Revolution goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic.
The most memorable attacking sequence for the Revolution in the second half was one that, perhaps fittingly, didn’t end up counting. After it seemed that New York winger Axel Ojeda had committed a hand ball in the box (resulting in a penalty kick), a VAR ruling overturned the call, judging that Ojeda’s arm had been close to his body and not in an unnatural position.
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Beyond that point, it was increasingly on Ivacic to keep New England level. The 30-year-old Slovenian made a pair of vital stops, first on New York’s Maxi Moralez at close range in the 68th minute, and the second against a Rodriguez shot from outside the box (which Ivacic managed to get a slight tip on to put it over the bar) in the 76th.
He wasn’t as lucky in the shootout. Despite some admirable attempts from the Revolution keeper, he couldn’t parry any of New York’s well-placed efforts. Kaye’s miss proved to be the only mistke of the shootout, and the home team crashed out of the second annual Leagues Cup.
The silver lining of a failed cup run.
With the muted dream of a cup run now extinguished — New England was never expected to make a serious bid without so many of its best attacking players — the Revolution can now begin preparing for the stretch run of the MLS regular season.
Once again ensconced in the familiar setting of last place in the Eastern Conference standings, it would seem on the surface that the Revolution’s season might be all but over. Yet as is often the case in MLS, looks can be deceiving.
While Porter’s team is in fact last, it’s by a customarily razor-thing MLS margin. With two games in hand and trailing a playoff spot by only five points, New England is one good week away from being back within shouting distance of a postseason spot.
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Still, any comeback is predicated on getting at least some of the injured contingent back. Exactly who and when that might be remains to be seen — and, somehow, New England exits the cup with even more players hurt — yet its not unreasonable to expect captain Carles Gil and possibly Vrioni to come back soon.
The Revolution will also potentially have the services of new signing Luca Langoni available for upcoming games. The 22-year-old Argentine should inject some dynamism into the lineup.
Regardless of who returns from injury or is acquired before the Aug. 14 transfer deadline, Porter can look at some of the peripheral members of his squad with slightly more confidence. The Leagues Cup offered a chance for depth players to gain both experience and form. As New England looks to pull every lever in the pursuit of a playoff spot, having a few more trusted faces available to come off the bench could be crucial.
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