FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – It was the offensive outbreak that many had been waiting for all season out of the youthful New England Revolution offense, which scored early and often en route to a 5-0 victory that snapped the Seattle Sounders (7-3-1) five-game win streak.
Diego Fagundez led the way for the Revolution's impressive win, scoring his first two goals of the season in a first half that saw New England jump out to an emphatic 4-0 lead. Patrick Mullins, Teal Bunbury and an own goal from Chad Marshall comprised the other goals for the hosts.
The result improved the Revolution to 5-3-2 and tied them for first place in the Eastern Conference, and dropped the Western Conference-leading Sounders to 7-3-1.
Initially all eyes were on Seattle’s Clint Dempsey, who was making his first MLS start in Foxborough since 2006 when he played for the Revolution. But the focus shifted when Mullins scored in the 14th minute, casheing in on a rebound on the Sounders doorstep for his second career goal.
Fagundez, who led New England with 13 goals last season, scored his first of the 2014 campaign in the 29th minute, burying home a lead pass from Chris Tierney from the top left side of the box. Fagundez added his second in the 41st minute, bringing down a beautiful ball from Bunbury before firing it perfectly just inside of the far post.
Bunbury scored five minutes prior to setting up Fagundez, giving the Revolution their first three-goal lead of the season. Bunbury netted when he followed up his initial shot against Stefan Frei, rifling the ball into the back of the net from a tough angle.
On the other end of the pitch, despite allowing two direct shots on goal in the first five minutes, New England's defense and goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth continued to make their fortress impenetrable, posting their fourth clean sheet in as many games at Gillette Stadium this season.
Lamar Neagle and Obafemi Martins had those early opportunities for the Sounders, but failed to put them away in a pair of chances that could have ultimately changed the dynamic of the game.
Seattle would not get another shot on Shuttleworth until the 54th minute of the match, but again the netminder was up to the task. Shuttleworth stopped a close-ranger header from Marshall, who deflected a shot into his own net a minute into the second half, to help keep the Revs undefeated (3-0-1) and unscored upon at home.
The Sounders next return home for a Saturday date with the San Jose Earthquakes. New England, meanwhile, make their second trip of the season to PPL Park to face the Philadelphia Union, who defeated the Revs, 1-0, back on March 15.
MLSsoccer.com Men of the Match
Rank |
Player |
What We Saw |
1 |
<a href="//www.mlssoccer.com/players/teal-bunbury" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12px;">Teal Bunbury</span></a> |
Was active early on and played an integral part in three of his club's goals. His pass to Fagundez was a thing of beauty. |
2 |
<a href="//www.mlssoccer.com/players/diego-fagundez" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12px;">Diego Fagundez</span></a> |
Opened his scoring account at long last and did so by scoring twice. Fagundez's finish for the hosts' fourth was clinical perfection. |
3 |
<a href="//www.mlssoccer.com/players/bobby-shuttleworth" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: 12px;">Bobby Shuttleworth</span></a> |
The goalkeeper on the team that won 5-0 might not normally be one of his side's best performers, but Shuttleworth was key early on in keeping the Revolution from trailing. |
