Richie Williams Remaining Focused After Clinching Playoff Spot
Hear what Williams had to say after Friday's win over Toronto FC II and the remainder of the 2025 season.
Friday saw Richie Williams' side wrap up a double game week when they welcomed Toronto FC II to town. Thanks to goals from Damorney Hutchinson and Gevork Diarbain, Revolution II came out victorious following a 2-1 win that saw the club secure its second-ever playoff berth.
Following Friday’s match, Richie Williams talked to The Blazing Musket about a variety of topics related to Marcos Dias’ historic day, penalties, youth development, and the remainder of the season.
Dias’ assist on Gevork Diarbian’s 56th-minute goal saw him notch his 11th assist of the season, and he is now the record holder for the most assists in a single season. Williams had great admiration for his star attacker for the historic achievement.
“What a great accomplishment for Marcos,” Williams said. “He’s been a big part of our second team for four seasons now. He’s a great pro, obviously, a very talented player, a very good player, and he’s a big part of our team. He fully deserves it. To break the record and make MLS NEXT Pro history is a great accomplishment, and hopefully he continues in the remaining games of the season and in the playoffs.”
While Williams is delighted to make the playoffs, he’s not thinking about it too much at the moment and shifted his focus back to Friday’s contest.
A concerning trend for Revolution II has been conceding penalties. Following Friday’s game, Revs II are now tied for fourth in the most penalties conceded in MLS NEXT Pro with seven. Four of those seven have come in the last three matches.
Williams admits his squad not making the right plays has led to a flurry of mistakes, which have led to these penalties.
“Your job as a defender is to defend,” Williams said. “It’s not to try and take the ball down or make a cute pass or whatever. If you have to clear it, clear it. We had an opportunity to clear the ball, but tried to head it back to the keeper very close to our goal, and it’s not the right play to do, and we gave up the penalty.”
With Friday’s match in the rearview mirror, Williams turns his attention to the remainder of the 2025 season, which will see Revs II play three of their final four games on the road. Despite the daunting task, Williams is up for the challenge.
“It’s always easier playing at home, but we’ve had some good results on the road this year,” he said. “We’ve got to continue that. Can we go there and continue to do the things the way we want to do things in possession, out of possession? Again, anybody in this league could beat anybody. Hopefully, we get results on the road.”
Williams and Revolution II will look to inch their way closer to the top seed in the East next Thursday when they travel to Icahn Stadium to face New York City FC II.