While he doesn't like the result, New England Revolution head coach Marko Mitrovic sees positives in Saturday's 1-0 loss to Red Bull New York.

It was a cagey first half, with Red Bull holding 73% of possession but only registering .28 expected goals through two shots. The Revs forced a save when Griffin Yow had a strong look from a tight angle.

Red Bull broke the deadlock in the 53rd minute, as Julian Hall scored his third goal in two games. This one came via a set piece.

The Revs pushed for an equalizer, with Dor Turgeman firing a shot during a transition moment and Jackson Yueill requiring a goal-line clearance. On the other end, Matt Turner made a critical late-game save.

The final scoreline leaves the Revs winless in two games. But the strong defensive performance, which produced a few attacking chances, does inspire some optimism, especially after last weekend's 4-1 loss to Nashville SC.

“I would say, comparing this game with the first game, we showed today much more personality and much more intensity, and we fought," Mitrovic said. "We had situations in the second half where we were running with four or five guys in the box against one or two [opposing] players, and we just didn’t execute those things.

"Even though Red Bull had more of the possession, I didn’t feel in any moment that they were really threatening us in their wide areas, where they are really strong."

Of course, there are areas to work on.

Mitrovic noted that they "definitely have done a better job" defending Red Bull's corner kick goal, saying, "I think that was the only time we lost focus in our box and we got punished."

The head coach would also like to see his team get better while in possession.

"We can still improve our game with the ball, and have, in certain moments, more calmness to play," Mitrovic said. "I understand what position we are in as a team and that it’s going to take us some time to have that strong belief that we can be with the ball as good as we want to be.”

The team stayed united on Saturday against a high-intensity opponent that amassed 22 shots in a 2-1 win over Orlando City in matchday one. The Revolution had chances to score, but couldn't finish.

"In the first half, we had three great situations in transitional moments," Mitrovic said. "We just lacked literally the last pass there to convert. If [there’s] a positive, when we were down 1-0, we stayed together, we stayed organized, and we were looking for our chance, our opportunity to score the goal to tie the game.”

The Revs now have two weeks to prepare for their next game, as their original home opener, scheduled for Mar. 7, has been postponed. They will return to the field on Mar. 15 to welcome FC Cincinnati.

The club aims to build on the positives as they look to collect their first win of 2026.

"I don’t like to lose games, but there 100 percent are some positive takeaways from this game that we can build on for the coming games,” Mitrovic said.