The New England Revolution will aim to maintain their strong home record when they face the Columbus Crew on Saturday in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
New England has had a contrasting performance at home and away. They have a 0-3-0 record on the road, scoring only 2 goals and conceding 8, while they are 3-0-0 at home with a goal difference of 10-1.
The Revolution have not conceded a goal in their last two home games. Defender Mamadou Fofana credited the team’s overall effort for this success.
“We are a team. So it’s from the defense up to the striker… To win the game with a clean sheet, it is perfect,” Fofana said.
New England’s scoring is well-distributed, with 12 goals coming from nine different players. Brayan Ceballos, Peyton Miller, and Alhassan Yusuf lead the team with two goals each.
In contrast, Wessam Abou Ali has scored five of Columbus Crew’s nine goals this season, but he will miss the remainder of the season due to a torn ACL he suffered in a recent match against Orlando City.
“When you don’t have Wes… we don’t need to change everything, but we need to find other ways to get more out of more players,” said Columbus coach Henrik Rydstrom.
Diego Rossi has three goals for Columbus, and Max Arfsten is the only other player who has scored for the Crew this season.
Abou Ali’s injury is a setback for a Crew side that had just started to find their rhythm. After failing to win in their first five matches, they secured a 3-1 victory against Atlanta United and managed to draw with Orlando despite Abou Ali’s exit.
Forward Jamal Thiare suffered a leg injury in a U.S. Open Cup match and is uncertain for Saturday’s game.
The Crew have a favorable history against the Revolution, with an 8-2-6 record in their last 16 meetings, including playoffs, and a 3-0-2 record in their last five visits to Foxborough.