The Blazing Musket

Share this post

Three Thoughts about the Revs' Final Week in Florida

www.theblazingmusket.com
New England Revolution

Three Thoughts about the Revs' Final Week in Florida

The kids looked good!

Seth Macomber
Feb 20, 2023
4
Share
Image Courtesy of the New England Revolution

The New England Revolution capped their three-week stay in Florida with a 2-1 win over Orlando City SC on Saturday night. The game was streamed, allowing us to get a peek at what the team could look like in 2023.

My colleague Sam Minton gave you his three thoughts after the final whistle and here are three more:

The Blazing Musket is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

1. The kids are alright

Jack Panayotou, who scored against Inter Miami, provided fans with some fun moments during his 45-minute shift against Orlando, including a picturesque ball to spring Brandon Bye.

Twitter avatar for @Sam_Minton22
Sam Minton @Sam_Minton22
So funny enough I thought this was Carles Gil but this says more about how talented Jack P is. Beautiful skill and a beautiful ball forward to jump start the attack #NERevs
3:30 AM ∙ Feb 19, 2023
8Likes1Retweet

Noel Buck also looked good after replacing Panayotou at halftime. The 17-year-old attacker, who almost trained with Tottenham in the off-season, was confident and strong. His best moment was when he boldly shrugged off a defender in the build-up to Orlando’s own goal.

Twitter avatar for @SethMan31
Seth @SethMan31
It will go down as an own goal but Vrioni is making the right runs. That’s huge #NERevs
2:22 AM ∙ Feb 19, 2023
18Likes2Retweets

Bruce Arena isn’t necessarily known for playing youngsters, but the Homegrowns have been impressive. They’ll be ready when their numbers are called.

2. The Revs need to figure out their defensive shape

The Revolution conceded a pretty poor goal in the first half. The ball starts with goalkeeper Pedro Gallese and a few passes later it ends up in the back of the net. It’s worth noting that several Revs defenders were caught high up the field.

Twitter avatar for @MattDoyle76
Matthew Doyle @MattDoyle76
My initial reaction was to crush the Revs for being pulled apart so easily, but watch how Jansson stares directly at Pereyra, which draws Kessler up & out, which starts the cascade of failures in the New England defense...
1:03 AM ∙ Feb 19, 2023
196Likes16Retweets

The Revs like to send numbers forward as they want to win the ball in their opponent’s half. This isn’t necessarily a bad strategy. In fact, Dave Romney and Christian Makoun pushing forward helped create the Revolution’s first goal.

Twitter avatar for @SethMan31
Seth @SethMan31
Great stuff by Ema and Vrioni, but Rennicks also deserves credit for his distraction run #NERevs
2:11 AM ∙ Feb 19, 2023
31Likes2Retweets

That said, the Revs need to figure out what their defensive shape will be. This takes time, especially since Romney is a new addition to the squad.

By the way, Saturday was the third straight game where Romney partnered with Henry Kessler. The two centerbacks played 90 minutes against Orlando while Andrew Farrell was sidelined with an injury.

3. Saturday’s lineup could be a preview of what we’ll see against Charlotte

The Revs were without a few players against Orlando as Farrell, Latif Blessing, Jozy Altidore, and Tommy McNamara were all dealing with knocks. Nacho Gil is also dealing with an injury, according to Prost’s Caleb Pongratz.

With this in mind, the lineup the Revs went with against Orlando was pretty close to “first choice.”

The first thing I’ll note is that the Revs used a 4-2-3-1 formation instead of the 5-man backline they used in their early preseason games. I’m guessing they’ll use a 4-2-3-1 early on with the possibility of later switching to a 5-3-2 or 4-4-2 in order to get two strikers on the field.

I also imagine that Giacomo Vrioni will start over Bobby Wood next weekend. The Designated Player looked hungry against Orlando, scoring a goal and also forcing an own goal. Vrioni’s ear-to-ear smile after the Revs took the lead tells its own story.

Twitter avatar for @SethMan31
Seth @SethMan31
The goal is good, but the celebration might be more important. Vrioni’s teammates embrace him while he smiles from ear to ear #NERevs
2:24 AM ∙ Feb 19, 2023
45Likes1Retweet

Depending on how players recover, we could see Panayotou slide out wide with Blessing or McNamara playing in the middle. Another option is keeping Panayotou central with McNamara playing wide. Noel Buck is also a candidate to start in the middle or out wide.

Generally, the final preseason game is a hint at how the team will look in the season opener. Last year, there was only one difference between games. Injuries and the absence of Gustavo Bou make it a little more difficult to predict this year.

Twitter avatar for @SethMan31
Seth @SethMan31
Pay attention to the #NERevs’ starting lineup tonight. Last year, the club used similar lineups in their final preseason game against LAG (1st pic) and their season opener against POR (2nd pic). The only difference was that Buck started vs LAG and McNamara started vs POR
Image
Image
3:57 PM ∙ Feb 18, 2023
13Likes1Retweet

Bonus Thought: We’re all on the #AnnounceEma train, right? I mean, the guy continues to be dangerous when he’s on the field. I suspect that he'll sign a contract this week.

Twitter avatar for @SethMan31
Seth @SethMan31
Spoiler: Ema, or #40, is still dangerous #NERevs
2:07 AM ∙ Feb 19, 2023

The Blazing Musket is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

4
Share
Previous
Next
Comments
Top
New
Community

No posts

Ready for more?

© 2023 The Blazing Musket
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start WritingGet the app
Substack is the home for great writing