Porter Expresses Confidence in Urruti While Campana Heals

Porter: "He’s scored a lot of goals in this league, so I have a lot of confidence in him.”

Photo Courtesy of the New England Revolution

The New England Revolution have faith in Maxi Urruti while Leo Campana heals from a hamstring strain.

Campana, who started the first three games of the season, was subbed out of Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia Union in the 10th minute. He was replaced by Urruti, who registered the Revs’ only shot on goal.

On Tuesday, head coach Caleb Porter told reporters that Campana will likely be unavailable for 3-4 weeks. Two days later, he expressed confidence in Urruti while speaking to Zolak and Bertrand.

“You never want to lose your top striker, but that’s why we brought in Maxi Urruti, who’s scored a lot of goals in this league,” Porter said. “He’s very experienced and he’s got a real positive energy as well.

“You love to put in a guy where the locker room loves that guy to be in. Maxi is one of those guys. He’s one of the best guys in the locker room. So everybody is pulling for him to do well.”

He later added, “He’s scored a lot of goals in this league, so I have a lot of confidence in him.”

Urruti noted that his preparation is the same whether he’s starting on the field or the sideline. However, he admitted that coming off the bench on short notice on Saturday was challenging because “it was very cold.”

The striker has collected 70 goals and 39 assists in Major League Soccer since joining the league in 2013. The Revs, of course, haven’t found the back of the net this year.

Regardless, Urruti said he “never” feels pressure when it comes to scoring. He also said that the burden to score isn’t just on him.

“We need to score, not only me but other players too,” Urruti said. “We create a lot of chances. The most important thing is we need to stay together and understand that it’s important to play for the group. We need to play hard [on Saturday].”

The Revs have several attacking options, including Carles Gil, Luca Langoni, and Ingatius Ganago, who can also play up top.

Porter believes that his team will find a goal soon. Perhaps against New York City FC this weekend.

“We do have to open up a little more,” Porter said. “I have to get that balance right. That’s on me first. But I do think the teams that we played, the last two, meant that we were never going to get a ton of chances, and I think we will in this game. We’ll get chances, and I think we’ll score.”