Damian Rivera Loan Report
Damian Rivera Loan Report
We check in on how the Revs young attacking talent is doing on loan in the USL Championship...
As the New England Revolution settle into a late summer break, it’s as good a time as any to check in on how Damian Rivera is doing on his season long loan to the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the USL Championship. Rivera was sent out in February and has been with the Rowdies all season to continue his development in the last year of his contract with the Revs.
Rivera had appeared in twenty-one games with New England, including six starts, from 2021-23 but didn’t appear to be in Caleb Porter’s plans with the first team for 2024. Unlike fellow loanee Jack Panayotou, Rivera wasn’t recalled during the Revs injury crisis this summer. Instead, he’s found himself busy scoring crucial goals off the bench for one of the USL’s best teams.
While only getting two early USL starts for the Rowdies, Rivera has made 22 appearances overall and logged 590 minutes. He also started, scored, and provided an assist in a U.S. Open Cup match that saw the Rowdies secure a 6-4 win over Birmingham Legion.
In the USL he’s provided four goals in late-game situations to help keep Tampa Bay near the top of the USL Eastern Conference all season long.
We reached out to Tampa’s Head Coach, Robbie Neilson, who was kind enough to provide us with his thoughts on Rivera’s time with the team so far.
"First of all, he's a great kid,” Neilson said. “He's nice boy to have in the group. He works hard. Attacking-wise, when he gets in certain positions with the game, he's one of the best in this league. You can see why he's in the MLS system. He's developed defensively a lot. I think it's been great for him to come out and play proper soccer, rather than play in MLS Next Pro. It's giving him an opportunity to work the defensive aspect, and his work ethic and I can definitely see a big improvement in him."
Neilson mentioned Rivera’s goals coming in key moments and indeed they have, he scored the winning goal vs Louisville City and doubled Tampa’s lead with late, game-killing goals against Indy Eleven and Charleston Battery. He also tacked one on to the end of a 4-1 route against RIFC and won the penalty kick for the game winner against Hartford FC.
"He's scored goals,” when asked about Rivera’s contributions to the Rowdies. “That's the big thing for him. In key moments in games for us, he's scored goals. He's been a big attribute. I think he's probably not played as much as he'd like because I had to change the system due to personnel early on in the season and our two starting attackers are among the top goal-scorers in the league this season. So it's been probably frustrating for him but he's learned a lot, how to prepare for games manage himself in a competitive environment, that actually means something."
The Cranston, Rhode Island native turns 22 in December and will also see his contract with the Revs conclude at season’s end. The Revs’ wide attacking ranks are plentiful at the moment and it remains to be seen if there will be room for Rivera in the Revs attack come 2025 and beyond.
If he is to move on, he’s done well for himself with the Rowdies showing that he is a talented, capable, and composed player who can deliver at the USL level. There’s two USL teams in New England that could be a landing spot for him next year if his time with the Revs is indeed at an end.