Revolution at Philadelphia Union, 3.16.13

The New England Revolution deserved to lose this game to the Philadelphia Union, and they did, 1-0. The pivotal moment of the match effaced any of the few moments of quality displayed by New England players up to and after that point. Philadelphia had been pressing for the entire second half, but hadn’t created many decent chances. With a few exceptions, New England’s back line had played in an organized way. But for whatever reason, they and their midfield mates switched off after the Union won a corner kick in the 75^th minute.

As Philadelphia’s Sebastien Le Toux rested the ball near the flag to take the kick, he recognized that the Revolution defenders had formed a loose arc around Jack McInerney, as though preparing to sit down cross-legged and listen to him read them a bedtime story. As a result, McInerney was left standing inside the six, goal side of every New England defender except those manning the posts. A probably disbelieving Le Toux quickly raised his arm and sent in the cross. No fewer than four New England defenders watched—inert and useless—from the area around the near post as the ball sailed over their heads.

Meanwhile, the Unions’ Jeff Parke and Sheanon Williams ran towards New England’s bizarre crescent-shaped defensive formation. Only Williams was disrupted in his run (by Kevin Alston), so that, when Le Toux’s pass arrived, McInerney and Parke were left shockingly wide open in front of the goalmouth. McInerney got on the end of the pass, and New England keeper Bobby Shuttleworth did well to block the shot. But McInerney was still so unencumbered by opponents after the deflection that he easily scored.

I’ll digress a moment to say that one of the appealing aspects of MLS is that its players on average don’t make a lot of money, but they do frequently display a satisfyingly high mix of quality, passion, and discipline. The Revs’ own Lee Nguyen might even be taken as the league’s poster child. I believe he’s New England’s best and most creative player, and one of its hardest working. Last year, though, he had a base salary of just $44,000. Truly, MLS is a league for those who are fed up with lazy prima donna athletes, made rich beyond the dreams of avarice by their bloated guaranteed contracts.

Unfortunately, that mix of quality, passion, and discipline that MLS players often show was entirely lacking on the Union’s goal, at least on one side of the ball. And as a proponent of MLS who took two hours out of his weekend to watch this game, New England’s effort on the play felt tantamount to a personal insult. It’s true that the Revolution back line has one newcomer (Jose Goncalves) and one rookie (Andrew Farrell), but the goal was inexcusable and would have been embarrassing for a team playing at any level.

I’m tempted to vow that I’ll drop New England and follow another team if the Revs display another similar inexplicable defensive lapse this season. That could be my recent disappointment affecting my judgment. But when it’s so easy to turn on the TV and watch teams like the L.A. Galaxy and Houston Dynamo—not to mention Barcelona and Manchester United—it may simply be the logical decision.