Revolution Set To Face New York Red Bulls In Eastern Conference Championship
BOSTON (CBS) -- After setting a new MLS record for goals scored in a two-game, aggregate goal series, the New England Revolution are on to their first Eastern Conference Championship since 2007.
The Revolution didn't take their foot off the gas and completed their two-game dominance of the Columbus Crew on Sunday, following up their 4-2 win in the first leg last Saturday with a 3-1 home victory in front of the 20,000-plus that packed into Gillette Stadium. Now they'll face off against the New York Red Bulls in another two-game, aggregate goal series for a trip to the MLS Cup.
"We're going to enjoy this, because it's been a hard season and a long season," said New England head coach Jay Heaps, who played in four MLS Cups as a member of the Revs from 2001-2009. "The playoffs are here, and we're off on the right foot. Now we have to play a really hot New York team; a team that has a lot of different challenges than Columbus. It's going to be a completely different game."
While New England advanced to the Conference Championship with a win, the Red Bulls did so with a loss. They fell to the top-seeded D.C. United on Saturday afternoon, 2-1, but moved on with a 3-2 advantage on the aggregate goals after winning the first leg 2-0 last weekend.
New York may have snuck into the postseason, but the Revolution know they cannot take their next opponent lightly. The Red Bulls have a pair of talented offensive players in Thierry Henry, who scored 10 goals and dished off 14 assists, and Bradley-Wright-Phillips, who led all goal scorers with 27 tallies during the season. The Red Bulls are the only team in the Eastern Conference the Revs failed to beat during the regular season, falling 2-0 in New York in June and a 2-1 loss in New England back in early August. In that August loss at Gillette, the Revs gave up two shorthanded goals to the Red Bulls in the second half.
But since giving that game away three months ago, the Revolution have been a different team. They've won nine of their 12 contests since, losing just once and coming away with a draw in two others, and the Revs are unbeaten in their last seven tilts, including their two most recent postseason wins over Columbus. The late-August addition of World Cup star Jermaine Jones to their midfield has made an already fast-paced Revs offense even more powerful.
"We have a bit more experience, and with Jermaine that helps our midfield core," said Nguyen, who is up to 20 goals on the season after scoring twice in New England's series against the Crew. "The guys are playing with a bit of a high and you can see that. These last two games show that we can go into anybody's house and get a result."
"We're always evolving, and I think each game we're getting better and better," said forward Charlie Davies. "Knowing where each other wants the ball and where certain guys are more dangerous; we're playing to our strengths."
New England has a couple of weeks to prepare for their first showdown with the Red Bulls, with the first leg set for Sunday, November 23 at Red Bull Arena (time TBD). The Revolution will host the second leg on November 29 at Gillette Stadium.
"That first game in New York is really going to dictate the series," said Davies, who scored three goals in 18 regular season contests for the Revs. "We have to come out and be ready. (Earlier in the year) we were up a goal, up a man, and we kind of crumbled when they put the pressure on us because we stopped pressuring them. That was the beginning of us finding our identity. We're a much different team than we were then, so hopefully things will work out."
The winner of the series will advance to the MLS Cup final on December 7 at the home park of the finalist with higher regular-season point total.
"It's exciting," said Davies. "When you're playing against Thierry Henry and Bradley Wright-Phillips, these are players who have performed at an extremely high level this season. You wouldn't want it any other way, playing against the best. For me, it's a dream to play against Thierry Henry. Anytime I can step on the field with such an amazing player – one of the best strikers of all time in my opinion – we have our work cut out for us."
The Revolution have faced off against the New York franchise three times in the postseason (2003, 2005 and 2007) and moved on each time. However, the Revs have never won at Red Bull Arena (0-5-1) since it opened in 2010.
MORE SPORTS COVERAGE FROM CBS BOSTON
