The Revs will continue their quest for their first win of the season on Saturday night when they host the Philadelphia Union at Gillette Stadium, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. ET.
WHERE TO WATCH
Stream: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
Apple TV English Talent: Chris Wittyngham (Play-by-Play), Lori Lindsey (Analyst)
Apple TV Spanish Talent: Jose Bauz (Play-by-Play), Diego Tabares (Analyst)
Listen: 98.5 The Sports Hub HD2; 1260 AM Nossa Radio (Portuguese)
English Radio Talent: Brad Feldman (Play-by-Play), Charlie Davies (Analyst)
CURRENT FORM
New England Revolution
11th in Eastern Conference (0-1-1, 1 pt.)
Last Result | 1-0 loss vs. Columbus Crew
The New England Revolution’s continued pursuit of their first goal and win of 2025 came up just short last weekend, as they suffered a 1-0 home loss to the Columbus Crew. Despite a hard-fought battle against a Crew side riding the momentum of a 4-2 season-opening victory over the Chicago Fire, the Revs were edged out by the smallest of margins as Jacen Russell-Rowe's goal early in the second half was the difference.
Though disappointed with the result, Revolution head coach Caleb Porter saw the competition between the teams as a notable step up from last season’s meetings with Columbus, when the Revs were beaten by a combined 9-1 across two losses. New England’s strong defensive display limited the Crew’s attacking opportunities, reinforcing a resilience that has become the foundation of their 2025 season so far. The Revs will now look to maintain strength on defense as they face the Philadelphia Union, who not only lead the Eastern Conference standings, but continue to impress as the highest-scoring team in MLS with eight goals through two weeks.
Philadelphia Union
1st in Eastern Conference (2-0-0, 6 pts.)
Last Result | 4-1 win vs. FC Cincinnati
The Philadelphia Union are riding a high to start the 2025 campaign with two wins and eight goals to their name. The Union began the season under new leadership with head coach Bradley Carnell, who was brought to Philadelphia after a stint with St. Louis CITY SC, where he led them to a 1st-place finish in the Western Conference as an expansion side in 2023.
Following their second win of the season, Philadelphia had two players named to the MLS Team of the Matchday. Forward Tai Baribo found himself honored after earning a hat trick at home against Cincinnati, along with midfielder Quinn Sullivan, who assisted two of the Union’s goals in the win.
KEY PLAYERS
Revolution midfielder Carles Gil
New England captain and 2021 league MVP Carles Gil will play an integral role in building the Revolution attack on Saturday as the hosts look to transition out of a strong defensive foundation and into a livelier attack.
The playmaking midfielder is motivated by the team’s search for a first goal of the season, while he also looks to break the club record for regular season assists. Gil, currently tied with Steve Ralston on 73 assists, has taken the second-most free kicks in the league (12) through two weeks, and he could aim to capitalize with the addition of new set piece coach Marc Ortí Esteban.
Union forward Tai Baribo
With a brace in the Union's 4-2 win over Orlando and a hat trick in the 4-1 victory over Cincinnati, Tai Baribo currently leads the league with five goals. The 27-year-old Israeli international also made a bit of history in the process, becoming just the fourth player in league history to register five goals through the first two games of a season.
Baribo’s performance against Cincinnati marked the second hat trick of his MLS career, last scoring three goals in a single match against the Revs on Matchday 27 last season. Baribo’s goal streak will prove a test for New England’s current high-performing defensive shape.
WHAT THE REVS HAVE TO SAY
Head coach Caleb Porter on how preparing for Philadelphia is different from Columbus or Nashville:
“They’re a little more direct, a little more vertical. They’re definitely aggressive in their press. They create a ton of transitions. That’s their philosophy, they really create most of their chances off press counters. So, we really have to be mindful of that, how we use the ball to play through them. But you have to be smart, you have to be careful. Then, how we keep balance and rest defense for when we lose the ball, to make sure that their transitions aren’t as dangerous as they have been in the last two games. They’ve scored eight goals. They’re also very good on set pieces. It’s pretty clear what they’ll look to do. We have to continue to try to get results and to get a result every game is a little different, but also mostly, we need to continue to evolve in our style of play irrespective of the opponent. That’s really important. We’ll definitely factor in Philly, but we also need to continue to work on our growth and becoming the best version of ourselves on both sides of the ball. I do think we’re going to have a game where the floodgates open up. That usually happens, you get the first and now the confidence grows, and you get the second, third [goal]. I’m hoping it’s this game. It’s important, because we’re going on the road in the next game, it’s important that we get three points in this next home game [on Saturday].”
Defender Will Sands on the team’s defensive unity:
“I think it just provides an element of stability for our team. The goals will come, but I think having that defensive structure and the unwillingness to give up many goals is a good base. You just need to build upon that and then hopefully, the results will come down the road.”
Goalkeeper Aljaž Ivačič on preparing to take on the highest scoring team in the league:
“They’ve scored a lot of goals in the first two games, but on the other side we didn’t concede much, so they’re going to face maybe the best defense if you put it that way. We’re going to prepare, they are dangerous, but we are ready too and I think we showed defensively in these two games that we are very good. Now, we just have to score goals.”
