Usseglio: Follow the Leader
El Capitán Leads Revs to Victory
Matchday 6 saw the New England Revolution take on the New York Red Bulls on a cold, misty afternoon in Foxboro. Coming off a bye week, the Revs were yet to win a game or score a goal of their own.
The Revolution faithful have been restless, for good reason. While the defense has improved from last year, the offense has not. Going into the game against New York, everyone was thinking the same thing. How are the Revs going to score?
Enter the Little Magician. El maestro en el centro de la cancha, director de todo. El hombre nacido en Valencia y convertido en héroe en New England. El Capitán. Carles Gil.
Saturday was Carles Gil’s game.
He was hungry, engaged, and dynamic. He played devastating through balls to Luca Langoni, Ilay Feingold, and Peyton Miller that should have produced a goal. He connected passes throughout the midfield and into the attack, orchestrating everything around him.
The first half was the best half I have seen from the Revolution this season. They created real, actual chances in front of goal. I felt like they were going to score, which is saying something given how poor the attack has been.
Even though they were not able to find a goal in the run of play, Gil scored a beautiful free kick in the 28th minute to put the Revs ahead 1-0. It was a perfect, curling shot into the top corner of the far post, beyond the outstretched arms of Red Bulls goalkeeper Carlos Coronel.
Gil sprinted to the sideline, roaring in front of the fans before getting piled on by his teammates. It was a defiant, emotional roar. One of frustration, passion, and joy.
Gil was here to play. He was here to win.
The captain was not the only player who showed promise in the first half. The wingers played better, with Langoni making multiple runs behind New York’s defense. I wish he had taken the initiative to shoot instead of crossing, but at least he was getting into the box. Ganago repeatedly got into dangerous areas and had multiple shots blocked or saved by the Red Bulls.
Miller looked good in his first start of the season. He ran at New York’s defense, providing an attacking threat that has been in short supply. Feingold looked comfortable in his natural right back position and had some bright moments of his own.
Unfortunately, the joy of Gil’s goal and positive play from the Revolution was dashed in the final moments of the first half when the Red Bulls scored on the counter attack. For all the good the Revs managed, they found themselves level 1-1 at halftime.
The second half was not as impressive for the Revs, but they were still able to generate some chances. I was hopeful they could find a goal and win the game, but time was running out.
There were 6 minutes added for extra time at the end of the second half. Ganago got fouled in the box in the 94th minute but the referee did not call a penalty. Gillette Stadium erupted in protest and the VAR called the referee to review the play. The result was a penalty in favor of the Revolution.
El Capitán stepped up to the spot and slotted home the penalty kick in the 97th minute. The Fort was bouncing, the muskets were fired, and relief settled over the crowd. It had been a roller coaster of emotions, from the joy of a brilliant free kick, to the pain of conceding in the final minutes of the first half, to the euphoria of winning in the dying moments of the game.
Fans have been starving for a sign of life. Something, anything, to give us hope. Saturday’s win is a start, but we need to see more positive results to be convinced.