LOS ANGELES – The New England Revolution have one preseason match under their belt and four remaining before they head back to the East Coast to begin the 2021 campaign. New England now have their sights set on a friendly rematch against the LA Galaxy on Wednesday night (10 p.m. ET, livestream on revolutionsoccer.net), after falling 1-0 to them on Saturday night.
“Even if it’s in preseason, with the number of chances we had and the fact that we held our opponent to few chances, that part was disappointing,” head coach Bruce Arena said of the preseason opener. “But at times there was good ball movement.
“We created a number of goal-scoring opportunities. Our finishing was poor, but there were also a lot of good things. And it is preseason, so we’re not losing a whole lot of sleep over it, but it just sends a message to our team that we have a way to go.”
The squad has taken this message to heart, as they know exactly what they're aiming to improve upon on Wednesday.
“I think for us that’s going to be the big focus – how many chances are we going to be able to finish, because creating hasn’t been a problem,” said rookie forward Edward Kizza, who played the final 30 minutes on Saturday.
While the Revs search for that finishing touch, Kizza also pointed out all of the positives the Revs produced that serve as a foundation heading into Wednesday evening's contest.
“[There are] things we’re going to keep working on that we did really good,” said Kizza. “Just working together as a team, defensively and attacking. So those are the big things we’re going to be focusing on – finishing our chances and working together as a team, all 11 players working together defensively and attacking.”
The Revs used 22 different players on Saturday night, giving those athletes an opportunity to build fitness and mesh with their teammates in a competitive setting. In particular, former and current players from Revolution II played against MLS opponents for the first time.
“They've all been doing really well,” said Justin Rennicks. “Maciel has been starting with the first team in the past game against LA. He's been starting and been playing really well. Jon Bell, Connor Presley as well – Connor (is with Revs II), but Jon Bell has been playing really well, also. As a center back, he's put up a good fight for a starting position.”
As the Revs head into Wednesday’s rematch against the Galaxy, they will look to find their finishing touch as they build upon the positives they displayed last weekend. The game will kick off on March 31 at 10 p.m. ET, and those in the New England broadcast area can watch it streaming live on revolutionsoccer.net.
