Revolution II Preview: 8/18 @ Toronto FC II
Revolution II Preview: 8/18 @ Toronto FC II
Revs II are on the verge of securing their playoff berth as they look to extend their unbeaten run to nine games!
New England Revolution II returns to action Friday night after stretching their unbeaten run while setting the club record for most wins in a season last weekend! Catch up on everything you need to know ahead of Friday’s contest.
Opponent: Toronto FC II
Time: 7:00 PM ET
Venue: York Lions Stadium, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Broadcast: MLS Season Pass
Projected Weather: Expect a cool and windy one inside York Lions Stadium. Temperature sits at 66° come kickoff and slowly drop throughout the match. Winds will gust at 20mph come kickoff and remain in the high teens throughout the match.
New England Revolution II:
Revolution II comes into Friday’s contest on the heels of a dominant 5-1 victory that saw a Jordan Adebayo-Smith brace and goals from Esmir Bajraktarević, Noble Okello, and Damian Rivera.
Sunday’s victory over Atlanta United 2 also saw Revolution II set the club record for most wins in a season with their 12th win of the 2023 campaign. Revolution II set the previous record in 2021 when the then USL League One club won 11 of their 28 matches.
It also saw Revs II stretch their unbeaten run to eight games. The Revs have gone 4-0-4 since their last loss, which came at the hands of FC Cincinnati 2 on June 18th.
A large part of Revolution II’s success in 2023 has come from newcomer Jordan Adebayo-Smith. The 22-year-old striker has an impressive 12 goals on the season. He is the first player in Revolution II history to notch double-digit goals in a season. Adebayo-Smith’s impressive campaign sees him tied with Marcos Dias for most goals in club history.
Sunday could be the most historical day in Revolution II history. If results go their way against TFC II or across the league, Revolution II could secure their first playoff appearance in club history. Just one point against Toronto FC II punches Revs II a spot in the MLS NEXT Pro playoffs.
Toronto FC II:
It’s been a rocky 2023 season for Gianni Cimini and TFC II. They enter Friday’s contest in 11th place in the Eastern Conference with 26 points on a 6-11-5 record with three shootout victories.
Despite the rough patches, some individuals on the TFC II roster have had tremendous seasons. The biggest being Jesús Batiz. Batiz has notched a team-leading eight goals and one assist over 21 appearances.
Revs II will have to watch out for Hugo Mbongue and Markus Cimermancic. Mbongue has notched an impressive five goals and one assist over ten appearances. While Cimermancic has only notched two goals, he’s a good distributor, as he leads the team with five assists.
Previous Meetings:
Friday’s contest will mark the tenth meeting between New England and Toronto. New England holds a slight advantage in the all-time series with a 4-3-2 record with one shootout victory.
Their first-ever meeting came back on July 9th, 2021, when Damian Rivera’s 46th-minute goal gave Revolution II a 1-0 victory. Both sides met again on July 23rd, 2021, and again, Revolution II secured a 1-0 victory after Ryan Spaulding’s 68th-minute goal.
Toronto avenged their previous losses on October 8th, 2021, as Kevin Politz’s 24th-minute goal gave TFC II a 1-0 victory. TFC II leveled the season series on October 29th, 2021, as Paul Rothrock’s 62nd-minute goal gave Toronto a 1-0 victory.
Their first MLS NEXT Pro meeting came on May 14th, 2022, when Marcos Dias’ 47th-minute goal gave Revs II another 1-0 victory. Both sides then found the back of the net on July 3rd, 2022, but neither side edged out a victory as it ended in a 1-1 draw. New England and Toronto took a point with the draw, but TFC II secured the additional point with a 5-3 shootout victory. Finally, a Paul Rothrock brace gave Toronto a 2-0 victory over Revs II on July 31st, 2022.
Friday marks the third meeting in 2023 between both clubs. Their first of the 2023 campaign came on May 14th, as two goals from Damian Rivera gave Revs II a thrilling 3-2 comeback victory. Their latest meeting came on June 23rd, as goals from Jordan Adebayo-Smith and Julian Altobelli led to a 1-1 draw at the end of regulation. Revs II secured the additional point with a 4-2 shootout victory.