FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – With a trips to Chicago and Kansas City on tap this week, New England coach Steve Nicol is under no illusions about the importance of this two-game stretch for his side.
“It's a big week,” Nicol told MLSsoccer.com by phone before the Revs departed for Chicago on Tuesday.
At this juncture of the campaign, Nicol and his players believe every match is a big one now that a four-match unbeaten run (eight in all competitions) has placed the Revs within five points of the eighth and final playoff spot.
Nicking three off the Fire would go a long way to bolstering New England's playoff hopes. The classic six-point-swing assumes even greater importance with Chicago holding two matches in hand heading into Wednesday night's tilt at Toyota Park.[inline_node:315300]
The particular ramifications of this match pale in importance when compared to the need to maintain the current run of form and obtain another positive result, according to Nicol.
“We're just concerned with ourselves,” Nicol said. “Things can change so quickly with a couple of wins and a couple of losses. All we're concerned about is what we're going to do. It's really that straightforward. We're not looking at the table every two minutes.”
Nicol may find himself a bit more intrigued about the status of starting right back Kevin Alston as the Revs seek to snap a seven-match winless streak in the Windy City. Alston missed the past two matches with a left hamstring strain, but he traveled with the squad to Chicago and could feature against the Fire if he passes a prematch fitness test.
“We'll give him a run out tomorrow to see how he feels and how his hamstring feels and then we'll go from there,” said the manager.
Alston's inclusion would bolster the Revolution back four against a potentially potent Chicago side still trying to find their feet after acquiring Nery Castillo and Freddie Ljungberg. New England have allowed just two goals in their past eight matches, and Nicol believes his side will need to sustain its recent defensive form in order to secure a positive result.
“The home team's always going to create something at some stage during the game, you'd expect,” Nicol said. “We just need to limit that to as little as possible and, when it does happen, we need to come up with the challenge, the save or whatever. We also need to get something on the other side by putting the pressure on them.”
