USL1 New England Revolution II

Revolution II Fall to Forward Madison FC, 4-0

Published on September 4, 2020 under United Soccer League One (USL1)
New England Revolution II News Release


FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - New England Revolution II (1-4-2, 5 pts.) fell to Forward Madison FC, 4-0, on Friday night at Gillette Stadium. Madison pulled ahead with a goal from Michael Vang in the first half, and added tallies from Adolfo Fito Ovalle and Wojciech Wojcik in the second half, along with an own goal from New England's Collin Verfurth.

Revolution Academy forward Michael Tsicoulias made his professional debut in the match, playing 68 minutes. The 17-year-old from Newton, Mass. became the 18th player and 11th current or former Revolution Academy player to make his pro debut with Revolution II. New England goalkeeper Joe Rice returned to the starting lineup for the first time since August 26, matching a season high with his third six-save performance of the year. Revolution II forward Orlando Sinclair and midfielder Damian Rivera each tallied two shots, including one on target.

New England will cap its two-game homestand on Wednesday at Gillette Stadium, hosting Chattanooga Red Wolves SC. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET with the match streaming live on ESPN+ in the United States.

New England Revolution II 0, Forward Madison FC 4

September 4, 2020 - Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)

Michael Tsicoulias Makes Professional Debut

- Academy forward Michael Tsicoulias (Newton, Mass. - 2002) earned his professional debut on Friday, starting and playing 68 minutes.

- The University of Virginia commit was an unused substitute in the season opener and an inclusion to the matchday roster for the past three games.

Nicolas Firmino Records Season Highs

- Midfielder Nicolas Firmino recorded season-high marks in two categories, recording 89 touches and completing 63 of his 77 passes (81.2 percent), including 24 in the opposing half.

- Firmino led New England two key passes on the night and also factored in five possessions gained.

Revolution II Makes Four Changes to the Starting Lineup

- New England saw four changes to its starting lineup from the most recent match against Chattanooga on August 29. Joe Rice, Tiago Mendonca, Damian Rivera, and Michael Tsicoulias replaced Keegan Meyer, Isaac Angking, Colby Quinones, and Mayele Malango.

- Additionally, Ryan Spaulding, who started last Saturday's match against Chattanooga at left wing, moved to left back while Ryo Shimazaki returned to the right back position.

GAME CAPSULE

Referee: Kenneth Rojas

Assistant Referees: Justin Lopez (AR1), Ian Mangione (AR2)

Fourth Official: Jeremy Scheer

Weather: 75 degrees and clear

Scoring Summary:

MAD - Michael Vang (Unassisted) 39'

MAD - Collin Verfurth (Own Goal) 61'

MAD - Adolfo Fito Ovalle (Paulo Junior) 88'

MAD - Wojciech Wojcik (Unassisted) 90'

Misconduct Summary:

NONE

New England Revolution II: Joe Rice; Ryan Spaulding, Jon Bell, Collin Verfurth ©, Ryo Shimazaki (Colby Quinones 87'); Nicolas Firmino, Maciel, Tiago Mendonca (Hikaru Fujiwara 68'); Damian Rivera, Michael Tsicoulias (Mayele Malango 68'), Orlando Sinclair (Connor Presley 87').

Substitutes Not Used: Keegan Meyer, Nathan Metsack, Isaie Louis.

Forward Madison FC: Philipp Marceta; Jiro Barriga Toyama; Connor Tobin ©, Josiah Trimmingham; Christian Diaz; Eric Leonard, Don Smart (Jamael Cox 68'), J.C. Banks (Adolfo Fito Ovalle 68'); Paulo Junior (Noah Fuson 88'), Michael Vang (Eli Lockaby 82'), Wojciech Wojcik.

Substitutes Not Used: Chris Brady, Gustavo Fernandes, Louis Bennett.

New England Revolution II Team Statistics Forward Madison FC

10 (3) Shots (on Target) 19 (9)

6 Saves 3

6 Corner Kicks 6

2 Offsides 1

6 Fouls 14

439 (81.3%) Passes Attempted (% Completed) 480 (85.0%)

47.7% Possession 52.3%

POSTGAME QUOTES: New England Revolution II 0 vs. Forward Madison FC 4

Revolution II Head Coach Clint Peay

On switching to a 4-4-2 formation:

Peay: "It didn't pan out at all because we can't make good decisions. The switch was because we struggle defensively in transition and it was to allow us to get behind the ball and hopefully counter-attack them."

On Michael Tsicoulias earning his pro debut with a start:

Peay: "We needed someone to be able to run in behind who has got that kind of mentality and he shows that in training, so we gave him the opportunity to be a second forward for us tonight to hopefully provide that."

On the upcoming rematch with Chattanooga:

Peay: "To be fair, we'll see. If we continue on the path we're on of gifting goals to the opponent, it's going to be a tough day for us. We definitely are familiar with them and they're a difficult team to play against. They will be again. It's for us now to refocus and get prepared to hopefully have a better outcome."

Revolution II Midfielder Nicolas Firmino

On the team's difficulties breaking down Madison's defense:

Firmino: "Obviously, they sat back and let us play a little bit. We played out well but when we got into the final third we were sloppy, we couldn't execute, and that final pass was just a bit off today."

On making up for the injured Isaac Angking:

Firmino: "We tried to just move the ball quickly and Isaac is someone who helps a lot in possession. We tried to keep possession and I thought we did that pretty well, but like I said the final pass just wasn't there today."

On staying confident:

Firmino: "It's a tough loss but you can't dwell on it too much. Obviously, it can't be a regular thing, it can't keep occurring over and over again. But we'll watch the film, we'll rest and recover, and get ready for our next game and hopefully forget about tonight."

On the upcoming rematch with Chattanooga:

Firmino: "We know how they play and we're a bit more confident going into it this time. Obviously, being at home we have a little bit more of an advantage. We watched film on them and we know areas where can exploit them and hopefully use it to our advantage in these attacking areas to come out with three points."

Check out the New England Revolution II Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



United Soccer League One Stories from September 4, 2020


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.