3 takeaways from the Revolution's 3-1 defeat against Orlando City (2024)

New England Revolution

Once again, New England started strong but struggled in the second half.

By Hayden Bird

July 14, 2024 | 8:52 AM

The Revolution lost 3-1 at home to Orlando City on Saturday night, New England’s second straight defeat (and third in four games).

Playing without a plethora of regular starters, New England produced a surprisingly methodical display in the first half, generating multiple chances and converting on a well-worked Giacomo Vrioni tap-in goal in the 23rd minute to take the lead.

Yet as has become a theme in recent weeks, the Revolution failed to follow up on a strong first half, yielding an increasing amount of space to Orlando attackers as the game went on.

The visitors produced an equalizer quickly in the second half, striking via a Facundo Torres left-footed curler in the 51st minute. Less than 10 minutes later, Ramiro Enrique snuck in to smash a rebound home off a redirected corner kick, and Orlando had the lead.

A second Torres goal in the 81st minute slammed the door shut on any chance that Caleb Porter’s team had of trying to salvage a result.

Here are a few takeaways:

Once again, the plan basically worked in the first half.

Porter was forced to cobble together a lineup that — already beset by the injuries to captain Carles Gil, Dylan Borrero, and Tomas Chancalay (out for the season) — was now left without midfielder Noel Buck (out with a quad injury) and center back Xavier Arreaga (suspended due to yellow card accumulation). Additional injuries, including winger Emmanuel Boateng (hamstring), have further hindered the team’s already thin level of depth.

The patchwork lineup featured Tommy McNamara (making his first league start since October 2023) and academy graduate Jack Panayotou (of Cambridge, Massachusetts,) getting his fourth MLS start at left attacking midfield.

But as has become a relatively familiar routine during the injury-depleted stretch over the last month, the Revolution still managed to look like the better team over the initial 45 minutes.

With Matt Polster and Ian Harkes leading the charge from central midfield, New England managed to dictate much of the game’s flow in the first half, leading to a flurry of half-chances.

This culminated with the opening goal, as Orlando — disorganized from sustained pressure — failed to close down Revolution attacking midfielder Esmir Bajraktarevic before the 19-year-old could curl an accurate cross to the back-post, where left back DeJuan Jones skillfully touched the ball back across the goal-mouth.

Vrioni positioned himself perfectly for the play, and calmly applied the finish for one of the easiest goals he’ll score in New England:

Still, having taken the lead, the Revolution failed to press their advantage. The final five minutes of the first half showed an ominous glimpse at the future, as Orlando began to assert themselves and create chances.

Injuries, bad turnovers, and poor set piece defense combined for a comprehensive second half meltdown.

Just as the Revolution’s recent trend has been predicated on first half dominance, its reflection has been second half struggles.

Orlando found infinitely more time on the ball in midfield after the break. And as if that wasn’t enough, New England players also began volunteering turnovers inside their own half.

Torres netted the equalizer after only a few moments, curling the ball past Revolution goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic (who, despite the scoreline, produced a quality game that included several impressive saves). The goal resulted from a turnover and an inability to prevent Orlando from passing the ball through the center of New England’s defense.

The injuries also began to tell in the second half. Porter’s lineup, held together by the thinnest of margins, began unraveling as McNamara tired and was replaced by Mark-Anthony Kaye (himself just returning from a month-long injury).

Forced to sit slightly deeper in midfield, New England conceded more and more territory. This led to sustained Orlando pressure. And when Revolution defenders were caught ball-watching on a set piece in the 58th minute, Enrique was delighted to charge in and smash his team’s second goal of the night past Ivacic.

After squandering the lead, the Revolution had no additional cards to play. Bereft of their best attacking threats, New England were unable to muster serious chances past a certain point of the second half. Torres’s second goal in the 81st minute slammed the door shut on a tough loss.

The academy kids are alright.

For those looking for a bright spot, it came in the form of Bajraktarevic and Panayotou. Neither should be the focal point of the Revolution’s attack, and in normal circ*mstances, they most certainly would not be forced to shoulder so much of the burden.

Yet when placed in the spotlight, each of the academy graduates showcased their potential. Bajraktarevic created the Revolution’s lone goal and looked a threat whenever he found time and space to dribble at his opponents.

Panayotou put together arguably his best game for New England, dazzling fans in short sequences with his dribbling ability, and firing a shot from outside the box that whistled just outside of the far post in the 64th minute.

Still, as is inevitably the case with younger players, Bajraktarevic and Panayotou’s contributions were inconsistent. They showed flashes of skill, but disappeared for stretches of the night as well.

Panayotou’s game was a microcosm of the Revolution’s recent pattern as a team: Just as he was beginning to figure it out, he went down with an injury (which appeared to be cramping) and was forced off the field.

It was also a night for an MLS debut: Groton native Malcolm Fry, 19, made his first league appearance as a substitute in the 88th minute. As disappointing as the night ended up being for the Revolution, the growth of the team’s academy on the MLS roster continues to be a positive long-term trend.