It was another disappointing away loss last weekend for the New England Revolution and
In the past four games (three losses and a draw), the Revs have generated enough good goalscoring opportunities to win each game. But lack of quality in front of goal is killing the team this season.
The stats tell the story of how bad the Revs finishing has become. Over the last four games the Revolution have put only 15 of 56 shots (27%) on target. That 27% is well below the teams season average of 44% (122 shots on goal on 277 shots).
Revolution coach Jay Heaps believes that it is lack of concentration when taking shots that is hurting the team at the moment:
“You can go back and look [about how the penalty kick in Philadelphia altered the game],” Heaps said. “You tell me how many chances we had. One on one, breakaways, slide tackles [by Union defender Carlos Valdés]. I thought we did a great job countering. I think, on the critical plays, we have to be a little more tuned into what we’re doing.”
One player New England is really missing at the moment is Honduran Olympic goalscorer Jerry Bengtson, who is currently starring for Honduras at the Olympics.
But New England cannot wait until Bengtson returns before they start to score again. With a four-game winless streak, the Revs need a win at home to Sporting Kansas City on Saturday night if they are to have any hope of making the playoffs.
“I think we have to take a long, hard look at ourselves,” Heaps said. “At the same time, we have to look at the negatives, adjust, look at the positives and move forward.”