Matt Turner Acquisition Already Paying Dividends

But who will win the post-EPL career's North London Derby

Photo Courtesy of New England Revolution

The acquisition of Matt Turner was a coup for a struggling New England Revolution, and the deal already seems to be paying off.

While it can not be overstated how bad D.C. United is, New England’s backline performed much better with Turner recording a clean sheet. The goalkeeper also completed 82 percent of his passes while completing eight of 13 long balls.

After New England’s loss to CF Montreal, head coach Caleb Porter noted how the communication among the backline needed to improve. He stated that the Revs needed a leader and Turner has appeared to take on that role. Beyond just the backline, Turner could be seen leading the huddle prior to the start of the match.

“Great to get a clean sheet,” Porter said after the match. “From here on out, it's going to be tight games so it's important that we defend well. I thought it was a great week of training. Our two lines of four worked a lot with the back four, just getting that chemistry back, getting that cohesiveness and I thought that helped. Matt just gives you confidence. He's chirping and it always helps to have kind of a cheerleader back there.”

While it was a quality performance from the goalkeeper, Turner doesn’t want to get too carried away and recognizes that he still has a lot of work to do in terms of building chemistry with his teammates.

“I mean, one-for-one with clean sheets. So far, so good,” Turner said. “I think I'm a very personable person, and through sports has always been my way to create meaningful relationships ever since I was a kid. So, for me to come into a new locker room for the fourth year in a row, it's not anything new. The best part about coming back here is that I had familiar faces and familiar surroundings. I didn't have to reacclimate to a lot of things, but I did have to take the time and make the effort to really start getting to know guys. I don't want to overreact. It's been one week, it's been one game, and it was a great night. Now, it's about rest, recover, getting ready for next week, and continue to build on those relationships.”

While Ivacic was a vocal leader, Turner provides communication along with top-notch shot-stopping. New England might not have needed a new goalkeeper but getting a player of Turner’s quality is hard to pass up.

As Turner alluded to, now it is time to see if he and the rest of the backline can do it against a much more talented LAFC squad. LA is currently fifth in the Western Conference 41 goals scored and is led by MLS All-Star Denis Bouanga who has scored 14 goals.

But the 2022 MLS Cup winners managed to improve their attack immensely by acquiring Tottenham Hotspur legend Son Heung-Min.

“I think for Son, it'll be a great transition, because he's a transitional player,” Turner said. “How many times have you seen him running down the wing with the ball, cutting inside, making things happen for those other guys in North London. It'll be exciting to have him here at Gillette and see how we cope with him, and how they cope with us. Obviously, a really good team that we're going to have to clean up some areas if we're going to get a positive result.”