Revolution clinch postseason berth with victory

FOXBORO – Never mind the Red Sox, the Revolution are going to the playoffs.

The Revs punched their ticket to the MLS postseason for the first time since 2015 and capped a rags-to-riches resurgence with a 2-0 win against Eastern Conference front-runner New York City FC at Gillette Stadium.

Veteran forward Teal Bunbury, who battled through an injured hamstring last month, scored the vital goal in the 66th minute when he chipped a ball over NYC goalkeeepr Sean Johnson. It was his sixth goal and first since scoring at Vancouver on July 17.

The insurance came in the 89th minute when Gustavo Bou caught Johnson straying off his line and chipped another ball into the net. Wilfried Zahibo picked up the lone assist, with Carles Gil also playing an integral role on the play. It was Bou’s ninth goal in 13 games.

It was the sixth shutout of the season for the Revs, who received another superb effort from keeper Matt Turner. He cemented the win with a diving stop on Heber in the 85th minute.

The Revs (11-10-12), who are seventh in the East with one game remaining, were focused on a playoff spot and left nothing to chance.

New York City had the first quality chance of the game, bringing numbers on the attack. The ball landed at the feet of Scottish forward Gary Mackay-Steven, but the shot was handled by Turner.

Twice the Revs came charging hard in the opposing third of the pitch, but defender Sebastien Ibeagha, who played four years at Duke, managed to make solid plays to disrupt the attacks, one in which he steered the ball away from Revs forward Cristian Penilla in the 13th minute.

Penilla had the crowd of 28,602 (largest of the season at home) buzzing with a clever exhibition of ball control, leaving NYC defender Eric Miller looking bewildered in the 29th minute.

New York City showed showed its potency as it turned quickly to transition in the 31st minute with 5-foot-5 Romanian speedster Alexandru Mitrita weaving through the Revs defense and unleashing a right foot shot that came precariously close to the left post before scooting wide.

Gil, set up by Penilla, sent a 25-yard shot over the target in the 42nd minute.

Turner made the save of the game in the 53rd minute when he dove to his right to deflect a low blast by Mackay-Steven. Turner improved his quest for Man of the Match by making a stellar save on a brilliant and curling corner kick by Mitrita in the 63 rd minute.

The Revs moved in front in the 66th when Bou slipped the ball to Penilla, who fed a pass to Bunbury. The veteran had a step on the defense and chipped the ball over Johnson to set off a celebration. The Revs subs who were warming up jumped over the barrier to join Bunbury.

The Revs also handed out 2019 season awards before the start with Gil earning team MVP honors, Andrew Farrell named the top defender, and Braintree’s Scott Caldwell drawing the club’s Humanitarian Award.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2nIzFvU