Andrew Farrell explodes after scoring first MLS goal

If you want to know what unfiltered joy looks like, re-watch the celebration that followed Andrew Farrell’s first MLS goal.

The New England Revolution defender found the ball at his feet during first half stoppage time in Friday’s game against the Montreal Impact. The opportunity was orchestrated by Gabriel Somi and Diego Fagundez, who used quick passes to put Farrell in on goal. With only goalkeeper Evan Bush to beat, Farrell teed up a shot that wrinkled the back of the net.

Then came the celebration.

Farrell screamed as he ran towards the corner flag, eventually collapsing to the turf. He was soon joined by his teammates, who were eager to join in on the moment.

“I blacked out a little bit,” Farrell explained. “I can’t tell you what happened. I just remember seeing Teal [Bunbury]’s face when I was running around, but it felt good.”

It was appropriate that Teal Bunbury was one of the first people that Farrell remembers seeing after the goal because the two had an interesting conversation earlier in the day. Although he hadn’t scored in five years as a professional, Farrell spoke to Bunbury about how he would react if he finally got one. Farrell predicted he would “explode,” which is exactly what he did.

“I think he went through about seven or eight different celebrations,” Bunbury joked. “It was a lot of fun. You could see that everybody was very excited for him.”

The goal was a critical one for the Revolution because it gave them a two-goal buffer heading into halftime. Bunbury scored the first goal five minutes after Saphir Taïder’s red card. Diego Fagundez had a chance to add another but his penalty was saved by Bush.

Farrell’s strike made amends for the miss and put the Revs in a comfortable place as they headed into the locker room.

“I think the second goal was definitely helpful,” Coach Brad Friedel noted. “And it took us into halftime with even more confidence from a half that we were well and truly on top.”

Farrell was all smiles after the 4-0 win. His team got full points, the back line secured a shutout, and he got his first MLS goal. The last accomplishment was certainly long overdue.

During the 2015 preseason, Farrell made a bet that he would only shave his beard after he scored. The promise was forgotten because Farrell just couldn’t breakthrough. Three years later, he finally did it, but that doesn’t mean the beard is going away.

“I’m keeping it,” Farrel said. “I’m keeping the beard. With the [game] ball, I don’t know. I’m just going to put it in my room somewhere. It feels really good to score.”