FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – If the three regular-season meetings between the New England Revolution and Columbus Crew are any indication, their Eastern Conference Semifinal series could be largely determined by the battle through central midfield.
New England’s central trio – likely to feature Jermaine Jones, Lee Nguyen and either Scott Caldwell or Daigo Kobayashi – has already matched up against the Columbus triumvirate of Federico Higuain, Wil Trapp and Tony Tchani multiple times this season.
While the Crew’s midfield got the better of the Revs in Columbus’ 1-0 triumph at Crew Stadium in late September, it was the Revolution’s central group which edged out the Crew in New England’s 2-1 win at Gillette Stadium just a few weeks ago.
That pattern – the midfield battle determining the outcome of the game – is something Revolution head coach Jay Heaps wouldn’t be surprised to see continue into the MLS Cup Playoffs.
“That’s a pretty big matchup,” he said. “I think it’s the strength of both teams. I think Higuain is excellent; I think the way he plays is really good. Tchani’s come into his own this year, and Wil Trapp is excellent.
“I like our guys, as well, so I think that’s where a lot of the game is going to be played. The team that wins that battle is probably going to come out on top.”
Two of the Revolution’s key contributors through the 9-1-1 run to close the season were Jones and Nguyen. Both scored in New England’s win over Columbus in the most recent meeting.
While Jones has registered two goals and four assists in 10 appearances since arriving in Foxborough, his biggest contribution might be in the freedom he’s provided Nguyen.
With nine goals and three assists in the 10 games he’s played alongside Jones, Nguyen notched MLS Etihad Airways Player of the Month honors for October and has shot to the front of the pack in the race for the league’s Most Valuable Player award.
“He’s definitely been instrumental this year for our push to the playoffs and also creating space for me in the attacking third, because he takes a lot of pressure off me from having to go all the way back to get the ball,” Nguyen said of Jones. “He can also spring a lot of balls forward, so teams are going to start having to nail down on him, too, and I think it will create space for other players.”
