January 29, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – New England Revolution News Release
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The New England Revolution played Los Angeles FC to a 1-1 draw at Banc of California Stadium in the team’s first preseason friendly of the 2022 campaign. Adam Buksa scored the opening goal in 44th minute as he buried a rebound following Gustavo Bou’s saved attempt. LAFC’s Mamadou Fall equalized from the penalty spot in the 86th minute.
Reigning MLS MVP Carles Gil captained the Revolution to a 1-0 lead after the first 45 minutes behind Buksa’s goal. New England applied steady pressure throughout the half, including a close-range attempt from Omar Gonzalez that struck the crossbar. Bruce Arena then deployed nine changes for the second half, including three Homegrown Players in Noel Buck, Justin Rennicks, and Damian Rivera. Buck, 16, made his first-team debut and recorded one shot on target.
Earl Edwards Jr. made the start in net and held LAFC scoreless through 60 minutes with two strong saves, including a denial of Carlos Vela in the 32nd minute. First-round 2022 MLS SuperDraft pick Jacob Jackson relieved him in the 60th minute and recorded one save.
New England will continue training in Los Angeles this week before playing a second friendly match on Saturday, Feb. 5 against the LA Galaxy at Dignity Health Sports Park (10:00 p.m. ET). Streaming information will be provided soon.
The Revolution begin the 2022 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League on Tuesday, Feb. 15 with a Round of 16 matchup against Haitian side Cavaly AS. Leg 2 is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 22. Both matches will be played at Gillette Stadium and kick off at 6:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports and TUDN. Single-game tickets for the 2022 MLS season and SCCL “Pay-as-We-Play” ticket packages go on sale to the public on Tuesday, Feb. 1 at 10:00 a.m. ET. Call 1-877-GET-REVS or email tix@revolutionsoccer.net to learn more.
Match Notes:
The New England Revolution tied LAFC, 1-1, in the first of two preseason friendlies in Los Angeles.
Adam Buksa scored the first goal of the preseason in the 45th minute as he tapped in a rebound following Gustavo Bou’s shot.
Brandon Bye was the lone field player to return for the second half, playing 60 minutes in total.
Earl Edwards Jr. played 60 minutes in net and recorded two saves.
Jacob Jackson, New England’s first-round pick in the 2022 MLS SuperDraft, played the final 30 minutes in net and made one save.
Three Homegrown Players played 45 minutes each in the second half: Noel Buck, Justin Rennicks, and Damian Rivera.
GAME CAPSULE
New England Revolution 1, Los Angeles FC 1
January 29, 2022 – Banc of California Stadium (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Weather: 66 and Partly Cloudy
Scoring Summary:
NE – Adam Buksa (Unassisted) 44
LAFC – Mamadou Fall (Penalty Kick) 86′
Disciplinary Summary:
LAFC – Jesus Murillo (Red Card – Handling) 25′
NE – Matt Polster (Yellow Card) 40′
LAFC – Mamadou Fall (Yellow Card) 69′
*Teams permitted to replace players who received red cards.
New England Revolution (1st Half): Earl Edwards Jr.; DeJuan Jones, Omar Gonzalez, Andrew Farrell, Brandon Bye, Matt Polster, Wilfrid Kaptoum, Arnor Traustason, Carles Gil ©, Gustavo Bou, Adam Buksa
New England Revolution (2nd Half): Earl Edwards Jr. (Jacob Jackson^ 60′); Ryan Spaulding*, Jon Bell, A.J. DeLaGarza, Brandon Bye (Jake Rozhansky* 60′), Tommy McNamara, Noel Buck, Emmanuel Boateng, Justin Rennicks, Damian Rivera, Edward Kizza
* = Revolution II player
^ = Unsigned 2022 MLS SuperDraft pick
Postgame Quotes:
Revolution Defender Omar Gonzalez
On if it felt good for the team to play its first preseason action:
Gonzalez: “Absolutely. We’ve started before any of these teams have started and we’ve just been playing 11s against each other, so it was really refreshing just to be able to exert some energy against some other competition. That was really nice, and I thought the boys did well today. We fought. It was a bit sloppy at times, it was great at times – it’s everything we could expect from our first time out.”
On the atmosphere at Banc of California Stadium:
Gonzalez: “Absolutely. I wasn’t thinking there was going to be a crowd out here, but that was nice. That was nice to have a crowd, the drums going during a preseason match. It just made it feel that much more real, and it was a good day.”
On his first game action with New England:
Gonzalez: “Yeah, I was the only new face in the starting 11 today, but it was good to run out there with them and start building some of that chemistry among myself, [Andrew] Farrell, Earl [Edwards Jr.], DeJuan Jones – the entire backline and also the sixes in front of me. So, that was really good. And like I said before, it was a really good 45 minutes. I’m sure we’ll watch film and talk about some things, and then look forward to playing the Galaxy next weekend.”
On playing alongside Andrew Farrell after many years playing against him:
Gonzalez: “It’s been really good playing next to [Andrew] Farrell. I think we’re working well with each other right now, and there’s a lot of good communication there. That’s going to be key going forward. If you can communicate well and sort things out early, then it makes our jobs easier. From the start of preseason up until now, it’s only good things.”
On the team’s progress in preseason with Concacaf Champions League on the horizon:
Gonzalez: “Yeah, it’s been a shorter preseason, which is nice, but the window’s that much smaller. So, I think we’ve been pretty efficient in terms of ramping things up. I feel good about where we are. It was a good 45 minutes. I think next game we’ll ramp it up for some guys, and we will have to, because like you said, in two-and-a-half weeks, we’ve got a game, so things have to start getting real serious.”
Revolution Goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr.
On the team’s first preseason game:
Edwards Jr.: “Yeah, it felt real nice. Obviously, we’ve been playing amongst ourselves and getting minutes in when we can, but to come out and have some real competition was good for us, and I think it was a positive first step.”
On holding LAFC scoreless during his 60-minute shift:
Edwards Jr.: “Yeah, I think we were really focused on setting the tone in this first preseason game. Obviously with Champions League coming up quick, these minutes are important, and I think everyone took it seriously and, again, I think it was a positive first step.”
On Omar Gonzalez:
Edwards Jr.: “Yeah, very much a veteran player. It’s been a very smooth transition. He’s been doing this for a long time, so I’m confident in his abilities.”
On Noel Buck:
Edwards Jr.: “Yeah, it’s tough – off the field is tough being a 16-year-old amongst a lot of men with families and things like that, so I know he’s got his guys in the locker room that he’s close with and they look out for him, and I do think he’s performing at an extremely high level. I think back to when I was 16, to be doing the things that he’s doing is very impressive, and I think he has a really bright future.”
On the focus as preseason continues:
Edwards Jr.: “Yeah, just continuity. I think trying to pick up from where we left off last year, see if we can improve and get better, and have another strong season. Obviously, with the strong season we had last year, there’s high expectations, and we want to do something that’s reflective of what we did last year.”
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