Carles Gil Dealing With Muscle Injury
Carles Gil Dealing With Muscle Injury
New England's star was only able to play 26 minutes against LAFC
A 4-0 loss is bad enough but after the defeat, New England Revolution fans found out that star Carles Gil is dealing with a muscle injury.
Gil only played 26 minutes before he was taken off after entering the match in the 63rd minute with New England searching for a goal that never came. The midfielder completed 89 percent of his passes and had 30 touches before leaving the pitch in anger.
“[Carles] had a little bit of a muscle strain and we knew we were only going to play him 30 minutes today and again he suffered another muscle injury,” said head coach and sporting director Bruce Arena.
Arena later added that he couldn’t give any update on Gil’s status for the next match against Nashville SC.
With Gil injured, Gustavo Bou returned to the lineup, albeit in a less familiar position on the field. Usually playing as a striker and occasionally on the wing, the 33-year-old was forced to play in a CAM role against LAFC.
Bou managed 31 touches, won six out of ten ground duels and also tallied three interceptions in 63 minutes played. He also was the culprit of a foul in the box that led to LA’s first goal of the game.
Arena admitted that Bou was put in a difficult spot in his first game of the 2023 season.
“This is tough on Gustavo,” Arena said. “To have to play him 60 minutes tonight. We knew it was going to be a little bit of an issue. We played him out of position because of the injury to Carles. We look forward to getting him fitter and putting him in a more comfortable position on the field.”
Revolution fans will be hoping that this is a minor hiccup for Gil and that he will be back on the field come Saturday. If that isn’t the case, New England might be forced to once again play Bou out of position and will be hoping for a better performance from the veteran DP.