New season, Same Revs

The New England Revolution kicked off their 2025 home slate Saturday night at Gillette Stadium. In came MLS powerhouse Columbus Crew and Superstar head coach Wilfrid Nancy. The Crew recently sold MLS top player Cucho Hernandez to Real Betis and have yet to replace him. The Crew still boast a superior attack that led them to a 4-2 win last week.

New England is coming off a 0-0 draw vs Nashville last week, with an improved defense and new "exciting" signings in the attack fans were hoping to see the Boys in Blue open their 2025 scoring account.

Sadly that did not happen as the Crew came into windy, cavernous Gillette Stadium and prevailed 1-0. The Columbus goal came in the 51st minute when Mo Farsi found Jacen Russell-Rowe at the top of the box, and Russell-Rowe tucked the ball in the Revs net with a left footed tidy finish.

Columbus had another massive chance in the 2nd half when Max Arfsten clanged the post to Aljaz Ivacic left. New England could only muster 1 scoring opportunity in the 2nd half when Luis Diaz made an impressive run down the right side and was taken down just outside the box to the left of the Columbus Crew keeper, Patrick Schulte.

Controversy then ensued, when Carles Gil whipped in a shot at Schulte and the ball appeared to hit off an extended arm of Crew player Dylan Chambost. The referee pointed to the spot, however after a VAR check he ruled that the ball came off of Chambost's back and the penalty was waived off.

Chances were far and few between for both teams. New England's best chance came in the 23rd minute when Leo Campana got in behind the Crew D and tried to chip Schulte. The ball clipped Schulte's side and was cleared away from harm.

Looking back on the night, I was thoroughly disappointed with the opening night pageantry, buzz and excitement in and around the game. We went through the gates at 7:25 and did not receive a 2025 schedule magnet, due to the fact that their were a limited amount given away.

As far as the crowd is concerned, I would say that there were about 18k in attendance, but at the final whistle, less than 5k were still there. The patterns of play and swiftness that the Revs played at was lackluster, slow, and looked disjointed, and sadly left a lot to be desired.

It will be a bit before we cover the Revs again, but the team needs to gel and find their cohesion in the attack. The defense looks more organized and stable, but that will only last so long if the Revs can't score goals and other teams start throwing numbers forward.

Until next time, deuces to the Revs and Gillette Stadium, if results don't change I think Porter will be on the hot seat by June.