Jozy Altidore still adjusting to New England

Jozy Altidore is slated to be the replacement for Adam Buksa but that will take some time.

Bruce Arena mentioned that while Altidore is completely healthy, he is still looking to gain full fitness. Arena described this as being able to play a hard 90 minutes.

So far in 2022, Altidore has played in 13 games but has only started in three of those appearances. In his 456 minutes played, he has only been able to tally a single goal.

In New England’s recent 2-1 win over Minnesota United, Altidore did get the start and was alongside Gustavo Bou up top. The American striker completed 56 percent of his passes and only had 21 touches in 67 minutes.

Altidore touched upon his chemistry with the team and his comfortability with New England’s style of play after the match.

“I thought it was okay,” he said. “I think there’s still a lot of work to do on my end. I just have to get used to the team. It’s a just totally different system. Its more free roaming in the attack, so I just have to keep working hard and try to get in a way where I can compliment everybody. I think I’m still behind in that regard, just understanding. Coming from Toronto [FC] we had a structure. It was just a bit more well-oiled machine, so I just have to find a way to make things work here. It’s a different style. It’s more of a random style, a more run-and-gun style. So, it’s just going to take time for me to get comfortable and adjust my game to the game of the team.”

If the Revolution are to play with two strikers, they don’t have a whole lot of options. Outside of Altidore, Justin Rennicks is the only candidate to line up alongside Bou. With the summer transfer window inching closer, it will be interesting to see if Arena will go after a No. 9 to replace Buksa.

But once Altidore feels comfortable and fully fit, fans will be hoping that he starts finding the back of the net.