3 takeaways from the Revolution's 2-1 loss against Houston Dynamo (2024)

New England Revolution

The already thin playoff hopes took a major hit with the midweek defeat.

By Hayden Bird

October 3, 2024

The Revolution lost to the Dynamo in Houston 2-1 on Wednesday night. The defeat all but consigns New England to a non-playoff season, though postseason hopes technically remain a mathematical possibility.

Despite several quality chances from both teams, the score remained 0-0 at halftime. Ezequiel Ponce put the home team on top in the 50th minute with a powerful blast from outside the box, but New England was able to level the scoreline less than five minutes later thanks to a Carles Gil penalty kick (the first penalty kick the Revolution have been awarded in MLS regular season play in 2024).

Chances continued to flow for each team, but it was Houston who ultimately took advantage. Poor set piece marking once again doomed the Revolution, with Erik Sviatchenko scoring to put the Dynamo on top for good on a quality side-volley in the 68th minute.

Here are a few takeaways:

The cruel irony of a good performance.

It was always going to be a tough assignment for Caleb Porter’s team to go into Houston (currently fifth in the Western Conference) and get a result. Yet for much of the game — especially stretches of the first half — New England looked like the better team.

With summer signings Luca Langoni and Alhassan Yusuf once again starting, it was interesting to see the increased chemistry across the entire squad. On Wednesday, it clearly appeared to have taken a step forward.

Gil, always central to the Revolution’s approach, enjoyed an excellent game (leading the team in touches along with calmly converting the penalty kick). Yusuf showcased his box-to-box qualities as a central midfielder, leading the team in passes (a rarity in any lineup that also includes Gil).

And after struggling to create scoring opportunities in recent games, New England easily could have been leading at halftime. Finishing chances, however, remains elusive.

Bobby Wood, selected as the center forward as an alternative to the mercurial Giacomo Vrioni, was equally unable to find the back of the net for New England (though in the case of his 10th minute reflex shot from close range, credit must also go to Houston goalkeeper Steve Clark).

“We should have been up easily, 1-0 or 2-0, with the chances that we had and the way we played in that first half,” said Porter after the game. “We have to finish our chances there.”

Playoff hopes fade

The defeat leaves the Revolution just a point above Chicago for last place in the Eastern Conference. Given those circumstances, playoff aspirations already feel delusional.

Yet given the structure of MLS — in which nine of 15 teams in a conference can make it to some version of the postseason — New England still nurtured the faintest of hope in recent weeks.

Now, those hopes are all but extinguished. With three games remaining, New England must close a six-point gap in the standings. Granted, the Revolution still have at least one game in hand on their opponents, but that comes against defending MLS Cup champions Columbus.

The other two games are against D.C. United (the final home game of the season this Saturday) and a nice trip south to face officially-crowned Supporters’ Shield winners Inter Miami.

Expecting wins against Columbus and Miami is foolish (though certainly not impossible). Yet for this to be the team’s remaining path for a possible playoff bid is testament to how badly the overall year has gone. The loss against Houston is the Revolution’s 18th of the season, clinching the third most in a year in club history (trailing only the abysmal campaigns of 1998 and 1999).

The lack of attention to detail strikes again.

The goals the Revolution conceded, both coming after the break, were thematically similar in the away team’s inability to get the details right.

On the first goal, it was an errant Matt Polster pass from inside his own half that began the sequence. Intercepted by Brazilian midfielder Artur, Houston exploited a wealth of space in front of the Revolution defense. Adalberto Carrasquilla received the deflected interception from Artur, and was allowed to turn and pick his head up without being contested.

Carrasquilla, who led the game in touches (98) and completed passes (72), easily found Ponce, who was himself allowed far too much time and space in a critical position just outside the box. Polster, asked in the moment to mark multiple players (Carrasquilla and then Ponce) was ultimately able to do neither. Ponce’s strike was quality, a requirement in order to beat Revolution goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic — who it should be noted had another good game despite the result.

The second goal, as has been a troubled theme for the Revolution in 2024, was off of a set piece. Carrasquilla, again the orchestrator, played his centrally located free kick to the near post. New England’s marking erred, leaving two Houston players to be covered by Yusuf on his own.

Like Polster, the Revolution midfielder — talented as he clearly is — was unable to mark two people. That Sviatchenko was allowed to chest the ball down to himself in the opposing team’s box and then volley it into the far corner of the goal was, in many ways, the icing on the cake of poor defensive organization for New England.

Though the Revolution played well for large stretches of the game on Wednesday, it was the “little things” — periodic turnovers, poor marking — that loomed large.

“For me, where we fell short is the details,” said Porter, “and that’s the area of our team that we have to continue to work on.”