Was at the drive-in too - pretty cool experience! Büettner looked good, but seemed to become less involved in the 2nd half. Defended really well and very smartly (Goncalves-like ability to shepherd balls out!). He won throw-ins on balls that Bye and DJ Jones would have been forced to clear. He did dribble into dead-ends a little too often, but I'll put that down to him trying to figure out what he can do in a new league. I figure he's smart enough to adjust going forward. Mancienne was very good - a shame he cramped up and couldn't finish, yet it was nice to see Arena had faith (and faith was rewarded) in bringing in the rookie Kessler to protect a one-goal lead late. You could see Bou was rusty, but it was also apparent he was getting closer and closer. I felt at halftime that he was sure to score as long as the Revs kept up the play. And, what a blast - not even that great placement, but what power! He loves that left foot. I knew on the scoring play that a quality chance was coming when they gave Gil acres of space approaching the box. He had no pressure and a clear sight-line to Bou; a critical mistake by Montreal's defense. Overall, I thought this was the tightest defense that the Revs have shown in years. Bye is going to have to keep improving, with Polster on the horizon as competition. I also liked seeing Arena's confidence in bringing in DeJuan Jones in the late going. I thought his subs were spot-on (though maybe a bit late). Not the best performance by Buksa, but he was inches off one one tap-in and a threat for another one. He had a couple of chances on headers, but was pretty tightly guarded. Once he gets used to Bou's near-in crosses, he'll be a serious poacher at the back post. Overall, I thought it was an excellent performance - but, OTOH, Montreal was pretty lifeless (partly because the Revs defended well and hounded and stole the ball well).
Also, Rowe was very, very good. Best performance by him in a long time. Good to see minutes for Taj Buchanon too. I suspect Diego's time has passed.
New England Revolution hit Designated Player milestone, show they can compete in today's MLS July 10, 2020 12:22AM EDT Charles Boehm
In this video, Matt Doyle shows how Bye created the space for Gil. https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020...evolutions-counter-press-vs-montreal-top-tier Lemieux said pre-game that despite Polster's experience at RB, he prefers to play centrally, and he was brought here to replace Caicedo.
Very happy to win. We created a lot of chances, I expect later in the season more of them will go in. The overall play was fairly good, a late preseason level. But, compared to the first game between Orlando and Miami, wow miles ahead of that game. That game I couldn't figure out if I was watching MMA or Soccer. The Revs looked good for long stretches of the game. I'm looking forward to watching this team grow and prosper in the future
I watched in spanish so idk about the commentators -- seems that was top of mind for most watching in english. For me, I thought it was a very fun game to watch (though some rust was apparent; can you say "squandered chances" ?). Rowe impressed me with his positioning & efficiency. Penilla one of those guys who has better touch on his dribbles and shots than on his passes; I thought in 2nd half he cut inside more and was more effective. Caldwell a favorite son but clearly limited. Mancienne looked better than I remember while he was there. Büttner can do some serious crazy eyes. Onwards & upwards.
Good analysis, but I also think Montreal's #8 was kind of lackadaisical. And, if not for the dogged work by Rowe and, especially Caldwell, that easily could have gone sideways for the Revs, as they were pretty heavily committed upfield, with Bye flatfooted in the attacking corner.
Did the cars go on to the field, or was a screen set up on the wall of the stadium? Something else?...... If they do this again, I'd like to go.
I think they used this game to fill a contractual obligation to to TUDN. I tried listening to the Twitter feed while watching on TV, (SAP doesn't work) but Twitter was about two minutes behind.
I was really looking forward to seeing what arena would do with Rowe (if anything.) I think Rowe has gotten himself in trouble in the past by trying to be Gil. He has always been at his best lying deep and harassing the opposition mids in the middle third. Arena seems to have added the discipline to make a good, attack-minded pass that is not trying to be a highlight reel pass.
They had plastic pallets covering the field, so we drove in under the lighthouse and bridge, then exited under the stadium near the opposite end. Cars were pretty spread out, just 100-something overall. He and Caldwell teamed up pretty well harassing Montreal trying to come through midfield - they produced a lot of steals/turnovers, leading to Rev attacks.