FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Something has got to give when it comes to the New England Revolution’s scoreless attack. But if you think it will be a drastic change in the team's formation, think again.
The notion of altering things by adding a second forward to spark the offense was met with a hearty “no” from New England head coach Jay Heaps prior to Wednesday’s training session.
“We’re not trying to recreate what we’re doing,” Heaps told reporters. “For us, right now, we’re still playing well, we’re creating chances and we’re going to continue to play as hard as we can, the way we know how to play.”
That way has been in the flexible 4-1-4-1, with newcomer Teal Bunbury up top in the striker’s role.
Heaps trotted out the formation to start the season in Houston, but the Revolution fell 4-0.
Injuries forced them to a 4-2-3-1 vs. Philadelphia, but the return of Saer Sene and Kelyn Rowe to the starting XI allowed them to return to the 4-1-4-1 last weekend vs. Vancouver.
Defensively, things have begun to come together, showcased in the scoreless draw against the Whitecaps this past Saturday.
Meanwhile, Bunbury & Co. continue to search for answers in the offensive third of the field, something that Heaps believes they will be able to discover with more time together on the pitch. Bunbury joined New England on Feb. 19 in a trade from Sporting Kansas City.
“It’s a matter of continuing to get familiar with each other,” said Heaps. “We continue to work at it and look forward to another opportunity to get on the field.”
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Rowe’s status is in question for this weekend as he deals with an ongoing hamstring issue, which could again hamper that adjustment process, but Heaps is firm in keeping the club true to form regardless of who is out there.
“Formations are our starting points,” said Heaps. “So when you start talking about formations and different things, for me it’s more about how we play and how we want to play and the philosophy in which we play.”
The end game in that philosophy will be finishing chances, something the Revolution have been unable to do through their first three matches.
