Revolution II Game Preview: New England returns home to host Huntsville City FC 

Aug 01, 2023

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – New England Revolution II (13-5-7; 51 pts.; 2nd in East) return to Gillette Stadium on Friday night as the team hosts Huntsville City FC (9-9-6; 37 pts; 6th in East). Friday’s match kicks off at 7:00 p.m. ET and streams live on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV with Josh Appel on the call.

Revolution II extended its unbeaten streak to double-digits for the first time in the club’s history, following New England’s 3-0 victory over rival Philadelphia Union II. New England found the scoresheet just before halftime when Revolution midfielder Joshua Bolma struck a ball from Jordan Adebayo-Smith into the top right corner. Revolution II kept control for the remainder of the match, with forward Marcos Dias adding a brace and goalkeeper Nico Campuzano picking up his second straight clean sheet, his fourth overall of the season. Revolution II now have seven shutouts on the season and sit in a tie for third for the most shutouts in MLS NEXT Pro with three matches remaining.

“I thought we had a great performance from start to finish,” assistant coach Marcelo Santos said postgame. “I think that coming out here, it’s never an easy task, and we had a plan. The guys bought in, and I thought the energy was great. Defensively, we helped each other out to make it difficult for them. We were able to play our game, and to score three goals away, it’s always a plus for us. I’m very happy for the team and give a lot of credit to the guys.”

Dias returned from injury and made his first appearance since August 6. The Brazilian forward now sits second in the team in goals scored with eight, behind Adebayo-Smith (12). Dias’ two goals marks his team-high third brace of the season. The 21-year-old led the way for New England against Philadelphia with a team-high two shots and two on target in just 38 minutes of action as a second half substitute.

“Marcos is a big piece of the team,” Santos said. “I think he’s a guy that can do the work on and off the ball. He’s very intelligent, and it’s really good to have him back and to be able to help the team right away by scoring goals because the confidence is needed for any player who is out for a couple of weeks, and that’s all he needed. Obviously, we’re thrilled that he was able to do that.”

Friday’s contest marks just the second-ever matchup between the two sides. New England and Huntsville last met on July 2, 2023 and battled to a scoreless draw, with Revolution II picking up the additional point in a 5-4 shootout victory. Revolution goalkeeper Jacob Jackson earned his second clean sheet of the season, in an eight-save performance. Dias and Jordan Adebayo-Smith, midfielders Jake Rozhansky and Brandonn Bueno and defender Jacob Akanyirige all converted from the spot for New England, earning Jackson his third shootout victory of the year.

With three regular season matches remaining, Revolution II sit just four points behind Crown Legacy FC for the Eastern Conference lead as those two sides are set to face off on September 17 after New England hosts Orlando next week.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR AGAINST HUNTSVILLE FC: