Revolution fall to Columbus 1-0 in MLS Eastern Conference final

The Revolution’s improbable hot streak in the MLS Cup playoffs flamed out on a frosty afternoon in Ohio.

The No. 3 seed Columbus Crew scored in the 59th minute and held on to defeat No. 8 New England 1-0 on Sunday at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, in the Eastern Conference final.

The Crew will host the winner of Monday night’s Western Conference final between reigning MLS champion and the second-seeded Seattle Sounders and No. 4 seed Minnesota United in the title match on Dec. 12.

“I enjoyed this run with this coaching staff and it’s been a lot of fun,” said veteran center back Andrew Farrell. “We won three (playoff) games not a lot of people had us winning and I enjoyed that, but it’s been a crazy year.

“I’ve enjoyed this great run but obviously disappointed we are not going to play in the finals.”

The Revolution persevered through a four-month layoff, a patchwork unbalanced schedule and injuries to key personnel only to fall two wins short of a championship. Coach Bruce Arena likes the foundation he’s built but promised an ambitious offseason to shore up the team’s deficiencies.

“We made progress last year, we made progress this year,” said Arena. “I think we want to continue that and in the offseason we are looking to bring in two or three players that can solidify our first 11. We have to get a little bit better there technically.

“We are not as good as we need to be. We need to bring in a few better players to help us in the attacking end of the field and we can use help at other positions. We’ll do our best to make our roster a little bit better.”

Striker Adam Buksa failed to cash in his second terrific scoring opportunity of the game in the 56th minute. Buksa won a battle for the ball and crashed the penalty area but his bid was denied by Crew keeper Andrew Tarbell.

Revs keeper Matt Turner made his fifth outstanding save when he denied the Crew’s dynamic striker Gyasi Zardes in the 58th minute. Turner’s fortunes changed quickly due to defensive breakdowns in the next sequence.

Lucas Zelarayan delivered a cross from the left side to Jonathan Mensah at the far post. Mensah deftly touched the ball down to an on charging Artur, who stuck a left-footed shot just inside the post past the outstretched dive of Turner. It was the first time the Revs trailed during the postseason.

Revs forward Gustavo Bou’s had a pair of scoring chances in stoppage time but couldn’t manage a hard swipe on the ball.

“Every time somebody scores you can check back to four or five things going wrong and they finished so you tip your cap,” said Turner. “They had a set piece and we didn’t get close enough to the ball and they crossed it and credit Artur.

“He put in the corner. I read it well but I couldn’t get there.”

Columbus made some threatening probes in the early minutes of the contest. The Crew were awarded a pair of corner kicks and got unobstructed shots on goal by midfielders Darlington Nagbe and Luis Diaz.

The Revs endured the Crew’s pressure tactics for an extended stretch until their possession game kicked in in the 20th minute. The passing was crisp in and around the penalty area but they failed to get a clean shot on the Columbus goal.

“They had five or six corners and kept us pinned in and playing good ball and we didn’t communicate as well as we could have on certain plays to get out and stop crosses,” said Farrell. “We knew it was going to be like that, Columbus is a great team and they put you on the back foot and kept us under pressure.”

The Revolution misfired on a great scoring opportunity that Carles Gil set in motion with a deep fed to Buksa down the left flank in the 28th minute. Buksa entered the penalty area unopposed with Bou in tow, but his shot bounced wide off the near post.

Turner maintained the scoreless tie with sensational saves in the 35th and 38th minutes. Zelarayan took a cross at the top of the box and left fly an arrow that Turner slapped wide. He made a similar stop on Pedro Santos, who ripped one off his left foot that Turner deflected with his fingertips.

“All year Matt’s been great and it’s good to see his development and getting the recognition he gets,” said Farrell. “He kept us in the game and he was really on and he’s getting better commanding his box.

“He kept us in the game and obviously that his job. But some of those saves were really good for us and I wish we could have rewarded him.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/3lTAURb