Revolution II Preview: 7/10 vs. Huntsville City SC
Revs II will look to snap a three-game losing streak when they return to Gillette Stadium Wednesday morning!
It’s a short turnaround for Richie Williams and New England Revolution II as they return to action four days after their losing streak extended to three games. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Wednesday’s matinee!
Date: Wednesday, July 10th
Opponent: Huntsville City SC
Time: 11:00 AM ET
Venue: Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, Massachuestts
Broadcast: MLS Season Pass - Apple TV
Weather: Wednesday will be hot inside Gillette as the region will be under a heat advisory throughout the day. Things will start at a sizzling 85° come kickoff before rising into the high 80s throughout the match.
New England Revolution II:
It’s been rough for Williams and Revolution II as of late. Their last outing saw them suffer a 2-1 loss at home to Eastern Conference leaders Philadelphia Union II on Saturday. The loss to Union II saw Revs II’s losing streak extend to three matches.
The recent three-game losing streak is just a snippet of Revolution II’s slump. Since their last outing inside Gillette Stadium, which saw them secure a 3-2 win over Chicago Fire II on May 4th; Revolution II has gone 1-7-1. A nine-game stretch that saw them get outscored 20 to 11.
Despite the disappointing loss, Saturday’s match gave fans the first look at Giovanni Calderón, whose signing was announced hours before kickoff against Philly. Calderón clocked a full 90 minutes in the loss.
Following the loss to Philadelphia, Williams stated he’s looking for improvement from his players on an individual and collective effort to help them get results.
“The reality right now is we’re having a tough time getting results,” he said. “I just talked to the team. Individually, we need to get better. As a team, we need to get better.”
Thankfully for Williams, some relief is coming as Marcos Dias and Maciel should be back with the squad ahead of Wednesday’s match after traveling with the first team to Seattle. Dias made his Major League Soccer debut as he replaced Noel Buck in the 87th minute. While Maciel made the trek to Seattle, he did not feature in the matchday squad.
While getting Dias and Maciel back is huge, Revolution II awaits the return of Victor Souza and Luka Borovic, who have been out for a handful of games. Souza’s last appearance came during June 1st’s 1-0 loss to Chattanooga FC, where he clocked a full 90 minutes. Luka Borovic’s last appearance came on June 23rd, where he clocked 44 minutes before exiting following a nasty collision with an opponent.
For Revolution II’s sake, hopefully, we’ll see their recent skid light a fire under them and they come out swinging against Huntsville.
Huntsville City SC:
While it has been a rocky season for Williams and Revs II, it’s been even rockier for Huntsville.
After a 0-2-2 start to the season, head coach Jack Collinson departed the club as then assistant coach Christophe Berra ascended to an interim head coach role on April 9th.
Things have not been much better under Berra as Huntsville limps into Wednesday’s match in dead-last in the Eastern Conference with 10 points on a 2-9-4 record with zero shootout victories.
Huntsville comes into the match amidst a three-game winless streak. After a 4-0 loss to Chicago Fire II and a 2-1 loss to FC Cincinnati 2, Huntsville’s last outing saw a taste of success as they secured a 1-1 draw against fellow Eastern Conference basement dweller Carolina Core FC, but failed to secure the additional point following a 6-5 loss in the shootout.
Despite the lack of success as a team, some individual players have had a good season. The biggest performance has come from Nashville SC first-teamer Forster Ajango, who tallied a team-leading six goals and one assist over eight appearances. Midfielder Jonathan Bolanos has also had a solid 2024 campaign, as he tallied four goals and a team-leading five assists over 14 appearances.
Previous Meetings:
Wednesday will mark the third all-time meeting between Huntsville and New England. While a small sample size, Revolution II has the historical advantage as they remain undefeated against Huntsville with a 1-0-1 record.
Their first meeting came on July 2nd, 2023 when a scoreless 90 minutes led to each side earning a point with a 0-0 draw. Revolution II secured the additional point following a 5-4 victory in the shootout!
It was all Revolution II during their September 1st, 2023 meeting. Thanks to an own goal plus goals from Jack Panayotou and Malcolm Fry, Revolution II secured a 3-0 shutout victory.
I'll be there, can't wait.