New England Revolution Midfield Trio Looks to Provide Much Needed Spark

“Matt can run and find a lot of good pockets on the ball. [Alhassan] Yusuf also has a good ability of driving with the ball and finding the right areas. But defensively, we work really good as a unit"

Photo Courtesy of New England Revolution

Not a lot of things have gone right for the New England Revolution so far this season but there is the potential for a new midfield trio to help the club get back on track.

Matt Polster missed the first three games of the season due to injury. He was one of a few players who was a permanent fixture in the Revolution lineup, appearing in 39 matches across all competitions last season.

“Matt [Polster] is a leader,” head coach Caleb Porter said. “He’s very experienced. Like I said, we have a new group with a lot of new players and a lot of international players. He knows the league, he’s a natural leader, and he knows what it takes to win, so it’s great to have him in. You saw in preseason, when we played those three [Polster, Alhassan Yusuf, and Jackson Yueill] together, we did pretty well.”

Yusuf and Yueill have had a quality start to the season. The former San Jose Earthquake has done well to acclimate to New England and has worked well with the Nigerian midfielder.

The trio featured at times throughout the preseason and looked to add some variety to New England’s attack and defensive capabilities. If the Revolution are looking to better connect the back line to the final third, these three players will be a big help.

“I think Matt [Polster] was injured a little but, so I think we’re still gelling a little bit with the three of us, but I think their qualities are very, very high,” Yueill said. “Matt can run and find a lot of good pockets on the ball. [Alhassan] Yusuf also has a good ability of driving with the ball and finding the right areas. But defensively, we work really good as a unit, which I think is something that we really want to do. Now it’s just about offensively, how can we create a little bit more and get it to our attackers in the final third a little bit better?”

While having a great midfield can help a club, the Revolution really need some goals. The only goal the club has scored this season has come off an own goal.

Porter believes that everyone in New England can improve but the club needs to score goals. For the head coach, the players mentality is crucial in failing to score and allowing opponents to find the back of the net.

“I think, across the board, everybody can do a little better,” Porter said. “It doesn’t mean that everybody’s doing a bad job. But why are we in the middle of every second half in all four games against good teams? We’re in the game, so why are we not finding the goal and why are we giving up the goal? For me, it’s mentality. The players need to step up, and they need to make plays and find goals. Again, in rewatching everything, we should have more goals. Can we create more? Yeah, but we still should have goals.”

Similarly to Porter, Polster noted how the Revs need to be grittier in order to start winning games.

“I think we need to push each other, set a high standard and expectation for each other, and become a little grittier,” the midfielder said. “I think that’s what it takes to win an MLS game. At the moment, I don’t think we’re gritty enough at times. I think we have to grind through games and in moments it doesn’t always go your way, but you still have to have that fight, that attitude, and that expectation to win games.”

Whether it be failing to score goals or a poor mentality, New England needs to change how it performs on the pitch quickly. If the struggles continue, the Revolution will miss the playoffs for a second straight season and Porter could find himself without a job.