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MLS New England Revolution

Revolution Defeat D.C. United, 4-3

November 1, 2020 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
New England Revolution News Release


FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Revolution (8-6-8, 32 pts., 1.45 PPG) defeated D.C. United, 4-3, at Gillette Stadium on Sunday night. D.C. United jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on goals from Yamil Asad and Griffin Yow in the 22nd and 26th minutes, respectively. The Revolution responded with three unanswered goals - first from Adam Buksa, who polished off a penalty kick attempt by Carles Gil that hit woodwork. On the other side of halftime, New England equalized through an own goal, before Teal Bunbury put the hosts ahead in the 67th minute. D.C. pulled level eight minutes later, but Bunbury scored again in the 84th minute to propel the Revs to a critical win.

With tonight's result, the Revolution enter Decision Day in 6th place in the Eastern Conference. New England will look to remain in or above sixth place in Philadelphia next weekend in order to advance directly to Round 1 of the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs and avoid a single-elimination play-in round.

With a brace in tonight's match, Bunbury moved into a tie with Steve Ralston for fourth-most goals scored in club history. He also moved into a tie with teammate Diego Fagundez for third-most game winning goals in the Revs record book (16). Bunbury's first goal was assisted by Tajon Buchanan and Carles Gil, who made his first start- and his first appearance at Gillette Stadium - since returning from an Aug. 4 foot surgery. Gil played 70 minutes in central midfield and paced the team with three key passes.

Buksa's goal was the sixth of his debut MLS season, and his third in the team's last five games. Fellow Designated Player Gustavo Bou made his return from an injury as halftime substitute, marking the third time this season - and the first time since the MLS Is Back Tournament - that all three of the Revolution's Designated Players were on the field at the same time.

New England concludes the regular season next Sunday, Nov. 8, on Decision Day, when the club visits the Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park. The match kicks off at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Boston, 98.5 The Sports Hub, and in Portuguese on WBIX 1260 AM Nossa Radio USA.

POSTGAME NOTES

New England Revolution 4, D.C. United 3

November 1, 2020 - Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)

Revolution Close Out 2020 Home Slate with a 4-3 Victory over D.C. United

The Revolution (8-6-8, 32 pts.) defeated D.C. United in its regular season home finale on Sunday night, 4-3, overcoming a 2-0 first-half deficit.

The match marked the first time since Sept. 28, 2003 that New England had won a match in which it was trailing, 2-0 (W, 3-2 vs. Columbus Crew SC).

New England finishes its home slate in the regular season at 2-3-5 with one away match remaining in the 2020 regular season. Tonight's victory snapped the team's three-game home winless streak.

Head Coach and Sporting Director Bruce Arena's all-time record moves to 218-130-105, and 16-9-16 with the Revolution.

Teal Bunbury Scores 60th Career Goal

- Forward Teal Bunbury maintained his team lead in scoring, bagging a brace for his seventh and eighth goals - and first home goals - of the season. His first goal was Bunbury's 60th in his MLS career.

- Bunbury's strike also places him in a tie with Steve Ralston (42) for fourth on the club's all-time scoring list, passing Joe-Max Moore's club tally of 41.

- The brace was also Bunbury's fourth of his career and second of the 2020 regular season (Sept. 6 at Chicago).

Carles Gil Makes First Start Since July 17

Midfielder Carles Gil registered his first start and third straight appearance since re-joining the team after returning ahead of schedule from surgery to debride his Achilles tendon on Aug. 4.

Gil, the 2019 MLS Newcomer of the Year, made his first start since July 17 vs. D.C. United in Orlando at the MLS is Back Tournament, playing 70 minutes and earning an assist along with three key passes in the victory.

Gustavo Bou Makes His Return from Injury

- Forward Gustavo Bou made his first appearance since October 14, missing the last three games with a minor hamstring injury.

- Bou came on as a halftime substitute, playing 45 minutes and taking five shots, three of which were blocked. His appearance marked the first time since July 17 that all three of New England's designated players had appeared in a match together and just the third time this season.

Matt Turner Surpasses 6,000 Career Minutes

- With 90 minutes on Sunday, Matt Turner became the third goalkeeper to reach 6,000 minutes in club history, joining Matt Reis and Bobby Shuttleworth.

- Turner improved his career mark against D.C. United to 4-1-2 and matched his career-high with his eighth win of the season in a two-save performance.

Adam Buksa Continues Scoring Pace

- Forward Adam Buksa scored his sixth goal of the season in Sunday's victory, placing him in sole possession of second on the team in goals this season.

- The goal was Buksa's third strike in the last five games for New England, and his first at Gillette Stadium since Mar. 7 in the team's home opener.

Revolution Make Three Changes to Starting Lineup

The New England Revolution made a trio of changes to the starting lineup, with forwards Tajon Buchanan and Teal Bunbury rotating in for Keyln Rowe and Kekuta Manneh while midfielder Carles Gil started in place of Diego Fagundez.

- Buchanan (10 starts), along with forward Adam Buksa (15 starts), remain the only two Revolution players to appear in all 22 league matches this season.

- Gil reclaimed the captain's armband as he made his first start and his first appearance at Gillette Stadium since returning from an Aug. 4 foot surgery. It was his fifth appearance and third start of the season.

GAME CAPSULE

Referee: Dave Gantar

Assistant Referee: Eric Weisbrod (AR1), Adam Garner (AR2)

Fourth Official: Guido Gonzales Jr.

Video Assistant Referee: Drew Fischer

Weather: 48 degrees and rain

Scoring Summary:

DC - Yamil Asad 3 (Edison Flores 1, Yordy Reyna 1) 22'

DC - Griffin Yow 2 (Unassisted) 26'

NE - Adam Buksa 6 (Unassisted) 30'

NE - Russell Canouse (Own Goal) 54'

NE - Teal Bunbury 7 (Tajon Buchanan 2, Carles Gil 2) 67'

DC - Gelmin Rivas 2 (Edison Flores 2, Moses Nyeman 2) 75'

NE - Teal Bunbury 8 (Unassisted) 84'

Misconduct Summary:

DC - Yamil Asad (Yellow Card - Unsporting Behavior) 14'

DC - Russell Canouse (Yellow Card - Unsporting Behavior) 29'

New England Revolution: Matt Turner; Alexander Büttner, Andrew Farrell, Henry Kessler, DeJuan Jones (Brandon Bye 20'); Scott Caldwell (Gustavo Bou 46'), Tommy McNamara; Tajon Buchanan (Matt Polster 86'), Carles Gil �© (Lee Nguyen 70'), Teal Bunbury; Adam Buksa

Substitutes Not Used: Brad Knighton, Michael Mancienne, Antonio Delamea, Kekuta Manneh, Diego Fagundez

D.C. United: Bill Hamid; Kevin Paredes, Donovan Pines, Russell Canouse, Oniel Fisher; Griffin Yow (Moses Nyeman 71'), Júnior Moreno, Yamil Asad, Edison Flores; Ola Kamara (Gelmin Rivas 58'), Yordy Reyna (Erik Sorga 58')

Substitutes Not Used: Chris Seitz, Earl Edwards Jr., Axel Sjöberg

New England Revolution Team Statistics D.C. United

19 (9) Shots (on Target) 7 (5)

5 Blocked Shots 2

2 Saves 6

11 Corner Kicks 4

2 Offsides 4

12 Fouls 13

524 (82.6%) Passes Attempted (% Completed) 324 (75.0%)

61.9% Possession 38.1%

POSTGAME QUOTES

New England Revolution Head Coach Bruce Arena

On what it was like to have all 3 Designated Players out there playing together and how Carles Gil held up:

Coach Arena: "Well, Carles (Gil) held up very well. It was good to get Gustavo (Bou) back on the field. So, all that stuff is good. We played against a team that had to win. So, it made for an exciting game. You know, even when we were down two goals, I thought we had a chance to win the game. First goal was important. Obviously the second goal. I thought the second half was huge. And we were sloppy to concede the third goal, but again, showed a lot of character coming back and winning the game. So, I was pleased overall with the performance tonight. Yet, I'm still a little disappointed in some of the mistakes we're making."

On how the team was able to establish control after going down 2-0 and then 3-2:

Coach Arena: "I think we had, oddly enough, control of the game even when we went down a goal and two goals. We were playing well, but we certainly made some mistakes that cost us dearly. And our team has been fairly consistent in showing character the entire year. So, it was nice to play our last regular season game at home, where the guys had to battle, dig in, and try to win the game and they did that. So, that's certainly a positive."

On the importance of finishing in a top six spot, to avoid the play-in game:

Coach Arena: "It should be important. But having said that, the whole year, I think, since we came back and played in the bubble and continued the regular season, we've been playing mid-week games all year. So, I don't think it's gonna be tremendously difficult for any team that's involved in a play-in game, in either conference. Having said that though, it will be nice to have possibly two weeks to prepare for an opponent, but we got to get through another week. We're playing Philadelphia next weekend and I don't believe we can brag too much about our results against Philadelphia this year. So, that's gonna be a real challenge and hopefully when it's all said and done, we're in a position to be in the last eight teams in the Eastern Conference during the playoffs."

On if the team is appearing to come together at the right moment in the season, right before the playoffs start:

Coach Arena: "You know, I think we at times, have played very well this year coming back from the bubble. We haven't scored a whole lot of goals, which has been disappointing. We've had some difficult results where we've lost points in closing minutes of games. So, it hasn't been the case that we haven't played well over the last couple of months. It's just that we have not gotten the results that we should've gotten and we've certainly made mistakes that have cost us. Tonight, again, we made a few mistakes, but we got a little bit of luck tonight, which is so all part of it. We haven't been a team that's had a whole lot of luck on our side this year. So tonight, we got a little bit of a break and walked away with three points. So that's a positive and I think going to Philadelphia on Sunday is certainly going to be a challenge, but I think we have good momentum now, as a team."

On if there is any injury update on DeJuan Jones:

Coach Arena: "No. I don't know. We'll know more obviously when we return to train on Wednesday."

On the return of Gustavo Bou and his performance:

Coach Arena: "He had a solid performance. He's a threatening player. He needs more minutes, get back his sharpness. But this is an important step today. He'll get more minutes obviously next week and then hopefully be ready for the playoffs."

Revolution Forward Teal Bunbury

On what it would be like having Carles Gil all season:

Bunbury: "It's tough to say. I wish I could say maybe more. For me, he's such a talented player that he makes everybody on the field better and his work rate as well. So just having him on the pitch helps raise everybody's game. We're glad that he's back, that he's healthy, and he's getting closer and closer to being 90 minutes fit come playoff time."

On the resiliency of the group:

Bunbury: "I'm so proud of this group for the performance tonight. Not easy conditions, it was sloppy, it was a battle, there was chippiness, there was fouling, rebound goals, all of it. This is a playoff atmosphere and to have that resiliency, I know that word gets used a lot but that's exactly what we showed tonight. Guys that started the game and guys that came off the bench, they put the work in and that's what we're going to need to do in the next game and come playoffs: everybody is going to need to put a shift in. The games get close and we're going to have to be tuned in and locked in for 90 minutes."

On having the confidence as a scorer:

Bunbury: "I think there's a lot of players like that. If I'm speaking just for myself, I think I want to give everything for the team no matter what, whether that's scoring, whether that's assists, I think I've said that my entire career. I want to work defensively for the group and I think I put myself in a good position tonight to get a couple good looks at goal. Great work by [Tajon Buchanan], Adam [Buksa] had a great shot that got blocked, fortunately I was in the right spot at the right time. So it's everybody around putting themselves into great positions and I think attackers in [rainy] weather like this try to keep the ball low when it's skipping. You're just anticipating a little bit more I think."

On the connection between defensive work rate and attacking:

Bunbury: "I think it's important. For myself, it's showing the guys I want to lead by example if I put the work in. I think I feed off guys who also do that as well and I think that helps put our team in the best position possible to win a game when we're all working hard, when we're all getting behind the ball, when we're all talking and communicating, and putting the other team under pressure, I think that helps everybody. So that's my mindset and I'm going to continue to play like that."

On the mood of the team heading into the playoffs:

Bunbury: "I would say the mood right now is we're happy with the result we got tonight, we still have a game left before the playoffs start and we don't know who we're going to play against. Our goal is to finish top-six so I think we're going to focus on this next game first but I think the mood is good and we still know that there's things we've got to improve on. Obviously, it's the end of the season so we have to make sure we're locked in these next couple weeks in training and focusing on those things."

On overall roster depth heading into the postseason:

Bunbury: "Having depth is huge especially for the playoffs after a long season like we've had. There's always injuries, there's always guys in and out of form, but not only do we have a lot of depth but a lot of guys that are positive guys. There's no egos in the locker room. We have a cohesiveness that I think makes it fun for all the guys. It's a healthy competition that we speak about. Everybody wants to play every minute, that's why we're here. But I think even guys that might not be starting are coming the bench or whatever it might be, everybody is working hard, pumping each other up, and I think that's going to be very important for these playoffs - that everybody is locked in - because you don't know when you're name is going to be called."

Revolution Forward Adam Buksa

On having Carles Gil back in the lineup:

Buksa: "It means a lot to me, because he's a great player, no doubt. Even after such a long break he showed a good quality on the field. It's always easier to play with him because opponents focus on him many times, because he's a player who can make the difference. He showed that in some moments. It's definitely easier for me. I have more space up front. I can't wait for another game to play with Carles."

On Teal Bunbury's comments regarding the team's strong chemistry:

Buksa: "It's crucial. When you consider in this game - because it wasn't a beautiful game, tough conditions, we were losing 2-0 and there was a very, very difficult moment for us - and we showed spirit, we showed a commitment. Not some players, everyone on the field gave 100 percent, and at the end of the day we grabbed a very important three points. Absolutely agree with Teal [Bunbury]. We are all a team. There is no one who doesn't really belong to the team. We are all together. It doesn't matter if you are on the field or not. You want the best for the Revolution, and that's the most important thing for the moment."

On staying prepared for a potential rebound on a penalty kick:

Buksa: "We train that, we train that. Obviously, I'm joking. We didn't, but yeah, that's part of my job to be ready wherever the ball goes in the penalty [kick]. A rebound, I need to be there. It's not always possible because sometimes it's about half of the second or half of the yard where you have to be or not, but I'm happy to have scored this goal. A goal is a goal. It doesn't matter how it looks. It's important that it hits the back of the net. I hope there will be more to come in the last game of the season and then in the playoffs."

On all three of the team's Designated Players being on the field together tonight:

Buksa: "Great, definitely great. We haven't played too many minutes together on the field this season, which was a bit unlucky. But in the final part of the season - and basically in the most important part of the season - we were able to get healthy and ready to play, ready to perform together on the highest level. It's a good sign, and I believe that we will score some goals in the last game of the season, but mainly in the playoffs, because we are already there and this will be the crucial part of the season. We want to go as far as possible in the playoffs."

On getting more comfortable on the field and getting into a good run of form:

Buksa: "There are always many factors of how a player is performing. It's been a tough season. Normally, I like planning ahead, and in this case it wasn't possible. I didn't really know how to prepare myself for the rest of the season after Orlando because we had kind of three preseasons in the middle of the year. It was a difficult one. Weird experience for me. I also had to find myself in the team, in the league, and it wasn't an easy experience because of the circumstances with the virus. These kind of things happen, and I'm sure that I'm on the right way right now and I'm going to be a better player game-by-game. I'm sure about that because I work very hard to help myself and help the team. I'm sure it's going to be better and better."

On the team's Designated Players getting healthy entering the postseason:

Buksa: "Definitely, but it's not only about us three. You can see Teal Bunbury performing great tonight. Tajon Buchanan as well. Our midfield performed well. Our defense was very solid as well. I'm pretty sure that we are a great team, not only as individuals but as a team. The team consists of 25, 27 players, and we all need to be ready because the schedule has been crazy. You could see that DeJuan Jones was subbed off because of an injury. Brandon came onto the field and performed very well. That's the quality we have, the spirit we have, and we have to and we will perform well as a team. That's the most important thing."

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