Two teams in the bottom half of the Eastern Conference table meet for the second time this season Saturday night as Toronto FC plays host to the New England Revolution.
Toronto (3-4-1, 10 points) picked up a 1-0 win March 3 over the Revolution (1-5-1, 4 points) thanks to a second-half goal by Lorenzo Insigne. This was the first of three straight victories for Toronto FC, though they enter this second meeting with New England on a three-match losing streak.
Toronto FC’s last win came against Atlanta United on March 23, as goals by Tyrese Spicer and Prince Owusu lifted them to a 2-0 victory.
Owusu is Toronto’s top scorer on the season with three goals in eight matches, while Insigne has netted two in five appearances. What has really hurt Toronto FC lately is the play of their defense, which has allowed 10 goals over the past three weeks.
Speaking after his team’s most recent loss to Charlotte FC, Toronto head coach John Herdman expressed disappointment in his side’s propensity for mistakes of late on the back end.
“It’s been three weeks, two particularly, of self-destruct moments …” Herdman said. “We can’t afford to give up goals like that.”
New England, meanwhile, has lost five of its seven matches this season and is in danger of missing out on the MLS Cup Playoffs for the second time in the past three seasons. Last year, the Revolution went 15-9-10 and finished fifth in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Revolution have yet to score more than one goal in an MLS competition this season. Their only win of the campaign came against Charlotte, 1-0, on April 6. New England’s top goal-scorer this season is Carles Gil, who has three in 2024.
Speaking earlier this week, Revolution head coach Caleb Porter said his team has the quality and personality to break out of the funk.
“I told the team that in these moments, you see different faces,” Porter said. “The best players, the best leaders, winners, they show the right face in this moment. If you’re not cut from that cloth and the right fabric, then you might show the wrong face.
“I’m learning, in this moment, that we’ve got a lot of guys that I really think are going to be part of the plans moving forward.”
–Field Level Media