Revolution v. Red Bulls: Three thoughts

The New England Revolution collected their first preseason win on Friday when they downed the New York Red Bulls 2-0. Kei Kamara opened the scoring in the 25th minute by nodding in a Lee Nguyen corner kick while rookie Brian Wright doubled the lead in the second half. The game wasn’t streamed but we have three thoughts regardless.

1. It’s good to see Antonio Delemea earn his first shutout with his new club. For the second straight game, Delemea played 45 minutes at centerback. After lining up next to Je-Vaughn Watson during his first outing, the Slovenian had a couple of partners while playing against New York. While Benjamin Angoua, a presumed starter at centerback, is still recovering from a knock he suffered while playing in France, it’s good to see that Delemea is healthy and getting positive reviews. Off the field, Delemea appears to be settling in just fine, as he recently stated that it feels like he’s “been here for a couple years, not a couple weeks.“
2. The rookie is bringing the Wright stuff. While that pun will draw a long “boo” from Jake Catanese, it’s also an accurate summary of Wright’s preseason so far. The University of Vermont product drew a penalty during his first game and grabbed a goal during his second. On Sunday, Wright recorded an assist while playing against Croatian first division side NK Istra. Is preseason different from the regular season? Sure, but it’s good to see Wright making an impact.
3. I want to see that Tristan Bowen bicycle kick. It was certainly interesting to see Bowen show up as a preseason trialist. Originally selected by the Revs in the 2014 Re-Entry Draft, Bowen decided to leave MLS for Scandinavia, playing for KuPS and AFC United. He has now returned to the states, hopeful to win a contract. On Friday, Bowen contributed an active 45-minute shift, which included an overhead kick. Regardless of whether or not Bowen earns a contract (he’d be good depth, in my opinion), I want to see footage of the bike kick. It seems unlikely that a clip will surface, so video of Bowen’s tally during Sunday’s 60-minute scrimmage will have to suffice.