With the MLS season just three weeks away, the Revolution started their preseason slate in Los Angeles on Saturday night. The matchup with the LA Galaxy was the first of five preseason matches the Revs will play while they’re out in California.
The first preseason game got off to a sluggish start, as expected. The game would be the first since the Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Columbus Crew almost four months ago. 22 different players would be used during the duration of the match.
The first 20 minutes saw three shots for the Revs, and just one for the Galaxy.
But just minutes later, LA would find the first and only goal of the match. Chicharito’s attempted strike was blocked, leaving the ball to float dangerously into the box. It fell down to the head of Jonny Perez, who beat Matt Turner’s gloves by a split second. The Galaxy took the early lead at 1-0.
The important piece about this match is that the Revs showed lots of promise. Two goals were ruled out for offsides calls, and 24 other shots were fired towards goal. The Galaxy only had 8 shots, in comparison. Maciel and A.J. DeLaGarza showed real promise in their Revolution debuts. The first 30 minutes of the second half contained loads of chances, but Galaxy goalkeeper Jonathan Bond was able to keep them all out.
New England will have a chance to rematch LA at 10:00 on Wednesday night in their second preseason battle. Finishing off quality chances will be the main focus in this week’s training sessions. We hope to see the debuts of several new signings in the coming tune-up matches. The season will open up on April 17th against the Chicago Fire, in Chicago.