Porter Views NYCFC Game As An Opportunity to Showcase Growth
Porter: “We have a chance to make up for [the last game] and to show, again, that we are improving and to show, again, that we are team ready to pop.”
New England Revolution head coach Caleb Porter views Saturday’s game against New York City FC as an opportunity to show the growth of his team.
A red card in the 14th minute derailed last weekend’s game against the Philadelphia Union. The Revs ultimately lost 3-0, moving their record to 2-9-1.
On Thursday, Porter said, “It was very disappointing for everyone, because we worked so hard to put ourselves in a position to try and take that next step to get a positive result.”
With that game behind them, the Revs are looking forward to welcoming NYCFC.
The Pigeons—who beat the Revs 2-0 at Yankee Stadium on Apr. 13—are third in the Eastern Conference.
“We have a chance to make up for [the last game] and to show, again, that we are improving and to show, again, that we are team ready to pop,” Porter said. “We’re a team that’s growing, we’re a team that’s together, that’s united, and this is an opportunity to show all these things to everyone.
“The group has worked really hard this week. Under the circumstances, their attitude is excellent right now. No one is happy [with the results]. I’m not happy. They’re not happy, but we are together and their attitude is excellent.”
One positive for the Revs is that they could have Dylan Borrero, Tomas Chancalay, Carles Gil, and Giacomo Vrioni in the starting lineup for the first time.
Borrero made his first start since last year’s ACL surgery on Saturday while Chancalay was serving a one-game suspension. The two midfielders have only played 50 minutes together.
“I think we have our top group healthy for the first time all season, and fit, because Dylan was healthy but he wasn’t really fit to be able to play major minutes,” Porter said. “Then obviously Chancalay was suspended last week, so this will be our best attacking lineup that we’ve played all season long.”
Porter is hoping to find lineup continuity as the team gets healthier. The Revs have yet to replicate a starting lineup through 12 games.
“The best thing we can do is just keep playing, keep continuity, keep playing the same group, and that’s how we’re going to continue to gel, gain chemistry, and gain confidence,” Porter said. “So, that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to keep rolling with these guys. We’ve had to change a bunch for different reasons, but I want to keep rolling with this group, because I think we have the right group playing.”
While the start of the season hasn’t gone the way the Revolution had hoped, Porter is happy to see improvement.
“I’ve said it, we’re progressing. We’re getting better,” Porter said. “Guys are getting more and more confident, more and more comfortable, we’re getting more and more chemistry. I know that because I see it every day with this group. Our standards are still high. They are still competitors. I’m always going to be a competitor.”
Now it’s about putting together a positive performance on game day.
“We have to go and make it right this weekend,” Porter said. “That’s the key – keep learning and keep growing. The guys are getting more and more comfortable, and we have to show it. At the end of the day, we have to show it. We can talk about it, but we have to go out and show it.”
And once again, on Zolak and Bertrand, he points fingers at the players, takes NO responsibility. Say what you want about Bill Belichick, he ALWAYS said, "We have to play better, we have to coach better."
Guess Esmir has fallen out of favor too? Unless Borerro is replacing him?