Revolution II: Three Thoughts After Loss to NYCFC II

Everything that could have gone wrong did as Revs II suffer a 6-2 loss on the road.

© John McGloughlin

Revolution II’s rough stretch continued Sunday evening as NYCFC found the back of the net a staggering six times. Following a performance like that, it’s hard to stick to three, but here are three thoughts.

1 - Déjà Vu

Another week, another loss after finding the opening goal in the opening 10 minutes. Sunday’s embarrassing loss marked the third time in Revolution II’s opening four games that they suffered a loss after netting the opening goal early.

Through 360 minutes, Revolution II has only held the lead for approximately 109 minutes with over half (~67) coming in their 2-1 win over Carolina Core FC on March 31st. 

It’s not rocket science, but if Revolution II wants success on the score sheet and table in 2024, they need to start buckling down and maintaining leads when they get on the board first.

2 - Dreadful Discipline

Following Sunday’s loss, Revolution II is tied for second for most yellow cards in MLS NEXT Pro with a staggering 15 yellows over four matches. They’re also tied in sixth for most fouls committed with 64.

Sunday’s loss saw SEVEN different players enter the referee’s book. Jacob Jackson, Victor Souza, Tiago Suarez, Joshua Bolma, Malcolm Fry, Maciel, and Olger Escobar received yellow cards. Some names were lucky not to have seen a second yellow come their way.

For some reason, Revolution II has lost its cool to start 2024. A yellow here and there won’t derail a season, but when you're constantly getting booked like Revolution II has so far this season, problems could arise. 

3 - Dreadful Dueling

A part of NYCFC II’s offensive dominance was Revolution II’s inability to duel.

They ended Sunday’s loss with 40 duels won, which was 19 less than NYCFC II’s 59. 38 of their duels won came on the ground, which was 11 less than their opponent. NYC had full aerial control as they won 10 aerial duels compared to New England's two.

Sunday’s inability to win duels differs from Revolution II's first three matches in 2024 as they either out-dueled or were pretty even with their opposition. Hopefully, Sunday’s woes are a one-time thing for Revs II.