TORONTO — The Revs got pounded in their last match against Toronto FC, falling 3-2 after an attempt at a late comeback. In this match, no comeback was needed. New England may not have dominated each passing second, but they did what they needed to do, and got the job done as they have all season long.
The first half was pretty quiet, TFC held almost all of the possession in the attacking third. Their 61% possession at halftime did not help them though. DeJuan Jones had his cross blocked, and served a beautiful ball to the back post on the second effort. Tajon Buchanan, the Brampton native, was there to head it home in front of his massive brigade of friends and family at BMO Field. His header to the top right corner probably could’ve been saved by Alex Bono, but he was unable to keep it out in the end.
Despite their consistent work on and off the ball, the Revolution began to fatigue and break down defensively, per usual. They folded heading into the final ten minute frame of the match, almost forgetting to close out Alejandro Pozuelo. Jonathan Osorio was simply sitting in the box, Andrew Farrell and the Revs defenders nowhere to be found. His tap in equalized the game for just a few minutes.
Adam Buksa has taken on a different role with Carles Gil out, and today his job was drawing a penalty. After not earning a single penalty kick in the many games Gil was playing, the Revs have been much more active in terms of getting fouled in the box as of late. Buchanan was fouled in the box last match against Philadelphia, and Bou earned one against Nashville, until VAR called it off.
This time, Gustavo Bou made no mistake. He put more power on it, though shot to the same side. Bono guessed right, but the height was just enough to hand New England a 2-1 victory on the road. It was an important match to win, their first match in Toronto since early 2019. New England is now twelve whole points atop the Eastern Conference, and will await their next opponent midweek at Gillette Stadium. DC United rolls into town on Wednesday for a 7:00 PM EST kickoff.