Carles Gil stepped up in a big moment, which is precisely what you want from a Designated Player.
The Revs were 0-3-1 heading into Saturday’s home game against the New York Red Bulls. Their only goal was scored by New York City FC defender Thiago Martins.
That changed this weekend as Gil collected two goals to give the Revs their first win of 2025.
The first came in the 28th minute via a free kick that he earned.
The Red Bulls equalized before halftime, setting up a cagey second half. The Revs broke the deadlock when Gil converted a stoppage-time penalty earned by Ignatius Ganago.
“That’s what you need from your top player,” head coach Caleb Porter said. “That first goal was a thing of beauty. He deserved the second goal as well with how well he played. He got in great spots today. He was goal dangerous, that’s the key.”
The Revs only converted one set piece and one penalty last year. To have one of each in the fifth game of the season is positive for them, especially since Gil is the most fouled player in the league (17), according to FotMob.
“I want to be better on set pieces,” Gil said. “I think I’ve improved a lot on penalties, and I want to do the same on free kicks. I practice that in training. I tried to put the ball in the other direction, not toward the wall.”
