New England Revolution vs Nashville SC: 3 Thoughts

Somehow the Revs aren't eliminated from playoff contention

Photo By J. Alexander Dolan

The New England Revolution returned home on Saturday evening to face Nashville SC and finally were able to pick up three points in a 1-0 win.

New England’s starting XI was very similar to the lineup that faced Charlotte FC. Aljaz Ivacic started in net behind the back line of Peyton Miller, Xavier Arreaga, Dave Romney, and Brandon Bye.

In the midfield Alhassan Yusuf got another start alongside Matt Polster while Carles Gil was in his familiar No. 10 role. On the wings, Luca Langoni returned to the starting XI alongside Ema Boateng. Finally Giacomo Vrioni was the lone striker up top.

But what do you need to know about the match? Here are three thoughts.

1 - Brandon Bye Is That Guy

The hero of the match has to be Bye. His goal saw New England get a crucial three points as the Revolution look to sneak into the playoffs.

Bye is usually on the opposite end of crosses but it was nice to see him use his aerial ability to get the ball in the net. It was even better to see him combine with Langoni.

While I don’t think Bye being healthy all year changes New England’s record all that much, he does bring some much needed quality and pace to the outside back position. There is a reason that himself and DeJuan Jones were considered one of the best outside back duos in the entire league.

If you want to be positive heading into 2025, it will be great to see what Bye and Peyton Miller can do when they have an entire season to work together on the wings. While it might not be the same as when Jones was here, Miller and Bye could become another dangerous duo on the flanks.

2 - Ali Be Saving

Saturday night was another impressive performance for Ivacic. The goalkeeper made some point-blank saves and ensured that New England got all three points from the match.

Ivacic broke down how he approaches making crucial saves.

“I’m just trying to stay calm in every situation,” the goalkeeper said. “In the end, they have to make a decision. They have to score. If I hold my ground as long as possible, I put pressure on them. That’s what I’m trying to do and I’m very happy that I helped the team tonight.”

The match easily could have gone the otherway if Nashville had scored in the first half but Ivacic stood tall. The goalkeeper made four total saves and tallied the clean sheet.

Pablo Moreira praised the goalkeeper’s performance after the match calling him the best goalkeeper in MLS.

“I think ever since we acquired him, he's done that and we're very fortunate to have a keeper of his ability,” Moreira said. “I always tell him, I think he's the best keeper in the MLS, and he's kind of shown that ever since he's come to us. When you know when things aren't going great, you need a keeper to bail you out. He's done that, and he's been called upon to do that, and we're really fortunate.”

3 - Oh No Giacomo

Saturday was another rough night for Vrioni. He once again struggled to make the most of his chances and even had Charlie Davies begging for Bobby Wood to enter the match off the bench on the radio broadcast of the match.

Vrioni took three shots with a combined expected goals of 0.19. He also competed 50 percent of his passes while recording 24 touches. The striker also racked up seven touches in the opposition box.

Since returning from injury, Vrioni has once again found life difficult in front of goal. He continues to prove that he isn’t worthy of being a designated player and that New England needs to add another striker.

But the Revolution got a crucial three points and that’s all that really matters. New England won’t have a lot of time to recover as they head down to Houston to play the Dynamo on Wednesday evening.