Edward Kizza looking to score five goals in 2022

Edward Kizza played the bulk of his 2021 minutes with the New England Revolution’s second team. This year he wants to make more of an impact with the first team.

Kizza was drafted by the Revs after playing for the University of Pittsburgh from 2017-19. The striker only played 259 minutes with the Revs’ first team due to the competition up top. Fortunately, the Revs have a second team.

“I think for me last year was more about my development, like coming from college,” Kizza explained. “Being on the second team helped me play games, just actually improve my performance and stuff. Training with those guys every single day, that helps me improve my confidence.”

Kizza scored five goals in 1,011 minutes with Revs II. His best stretch saw him score in four straight appearances to tie a USL League One record.

His proximity to the first team was helpful as he was able to learn from Adam Buka and Gustavo Bou, two prolific goal scorers. Kizza noted that he hopes to be “better in the air and my hold-up play has to be better.” He said that Bou tries to get him to “shoot the ball all the time.”

Kizza showed flashes in his eleven appearances with the first team and collected his first professional assist. He knows he has more to show, however, and is setting the bar at five first team goals in 2022. It’s something that teammate Ema Boateng thinks he can do.

“I want to at least five goals from [Kizza] because we give him a lot of flak that he didn’t get enough goals,” Boateng said. “But we’ve seen his effort that he puts in training, and he always tucks the ball away and if you just find him in the 18-yard box he’ll give you a goal. So, we know all the stuff that he’s capable of.”

Kizza says, “There’s no doubt, I’ll hit the five-goal mark.” To do so, he’ll have to work hard in practice. Then, and only then, will he get his chance with the first team.

“I think moving forward for me it’s just focus on training,” Kizza said. “I think, just focusing on finishing my chances in training, scoring as many goals as I can in training, and also passing-wise, everything I do – everything has to be clean. Hopefully those things from training can translate into the game.”