Three keys to three points: Orlando City SC visit New England Revolution

The New England Revolution (8-8-6, 30) and their ten game unbeaten streak (6-0-4) play host to Orlando City SC (7-10-5, 26) on Saturday night. The Revs are 3-0-1 at home against the Lions since Orlando joined the league in 2015. With a win or draw this weekend the Revs can tie the longest unbeaten streak in club history, which came in 2005.

New England will be looking for a better result than they found the last time they faced the Lions, as they suffered their only defeat under head coach Bruce Arena in dropping a US Open Cup match 2-1 in extra time at Exploria Stadium in Orlando, FL on June 19th. This is a Revolution squad that continues to look stronger with each passing game, and the addition of Gustavo Bou and his quick assimilation into the Revs system only further show that Arena is gearing up to make a playoff run in his first year at the helm. The Revs currently sit 7th place in the East in the final playoff spot, but can climb as high as 5th with a victory and some help from Sporting Kansas City against NYCFC and Philadelphia in their game against the Montreal Impact.

Here are my three keys to three points for the Revs:

• Fast Start – Orlando has conceded 8 goals in the first 15 minutes of play this season, and are 0-4-1 on the road when allowing the home team to score first. The Revs have scored within the first 10 minutes of play in 3 of their last 4 games, and will look to strike early and force Orlando to play from behind.
• Contain Nani – Orlando is 4-1-1 when the Portuguese midfielder finds the back of the net, and 2-0-0 in the games where he records a brace. The decorated DP has found success in the MLS, as was expected. His eight goals and seven assists are enough to lead the Orlando side in both, and put him in the top ten in the league for each category. If the Revs can contain Orlando’s most dangerous offensive weapon, they should be able to add another three points to their season tally.
• Keep the good times rolling – I’ve mentioned the need to hold strong late in games a few times in the last few weeks, and the Revs have done that in keeping their first two clean sheets of the Bruce Arena era in their last two games with 4-0 and 2-0 victories against Vancouver and Cincinnati respectively. The Revs need to continue to stay strong defensively. With Turner and the backline coming off of strong performances and the Revs scoring two or more goals in their last five outings, the boys in blue have already reinvented themselves, now they need to continue to improve upon the foundation that has been set.

How to Watch

Date: Saturday, July 27, 2019

Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. ET

Location: Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, MA)

TV: NBC Sports Boston

English Radio: 98.5 The Sports Hub

Portuguese Radio: 1260 AM “Nossa Radio USA”

What do you think the Revs need to do to remain unbeaten for their eleventh straight game? Agree or disagree with my keys? Leave a comment with your thoughts!