Caleb Porter has likened the final games of the season to cup finals, as New England Revolution prepare to return to action against CF Montreal.

The Revs have had a three-week break ahead after suffering a heartbreaking penalty shoot-out defeat to New York City FC in the Leagues Cup round of 32.

After a slow start to the season, New England sit bottom of the Eastern Conference, though are only five points behind Atlanta United in ninth.

And Porter believes his refreshed team have what it takes to challenge for the playoffs if they can string together a winning run.

"Every game is a cup final, these last 11," Porter said. "We're going to go for it.

"Obviously, our goal is to take it one at a time and win every game. We don't need to win every game to probably get in, but that's going to be our mindset.

"If we can win our home games, and then win half the road games, then I think we'll be in good shape."

Meanwhile, Montreal were also knocked out of the Leagues Cup in the round of 32, suffering a 2-0 defeat to the Philadelphia Union.

They resume their MLS campaign in a strong position, sitting fifth in the table, but have had problems in the build-up to this game after a public falling-out between head coach Laurent Courtois and striker Josef Martinez.

Courtois said he felt "betrayed" by the Venezuelan after he refused to take part in training, but Montreal president Gabriel Gervais says the problem has now been dealt with.

"This case is closed," he said. "For me, it's non-negotiable. Someone who is not disciplined cannot be here."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

CF Montreal – Josef Martinez

Josef Martínez has scored eight regular-season goals against New England, tied for his most against any MLS opponent (also eight vs. D.C. United and Orlando City).

New England Revolution – Carles Gil

Carles Gil has been involved in a goal in each of his last four regular-season MLS matches (one goal, four assists).

The Spaniard's longest streak of consecutive regular-season matches with a goal contribution is five straight, done three times, most recently in 2022.

MATCH PREDICTION: CF MONTREAL WIN

Montreal have won three of their last four home matches against New England, keeping clean sheets in all three wins. Montreal had won three of their previous 16 matches against the Revs (drawing one, losing 12), managing just two clean sheets in those games.

In fact, Montreal have lost only one of their last nine home matches in all competitions (four wins, four draws) with the lone defeat coming against Toronto FC on July 20. No American team has won at Stade Saputo since Columbus on May 15.

Meanwhile, New England are unbeaten in four straight matches in all competitions (won one, drawn three, including a penalty shoot-out loss in the Leagues Cup Round of 32), equaling their longest run of the season. The Revs' last longer unbeaten run was a six-match stretch that spanned last year's Leagues Cup.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

CF Montreal – 43.4%

Draw – 26.7%

New England Revolution – 29.9%

Philadelphia Union head coach Jim Curtin has urged his team to find a way to grind out a vital win when they meet the New England Revolution in MLS on Wednesday.

The Union sit bottom of the Eastern Conference having failed to win any of their last 10 matches, extending that streak against Toronto FC on Saturday as they conceded two quickfire second-half goals in a 2-1 defeat.

Their last win came against the Revs in mid-May, and Curtin has set the simple target of getting three points after admitting his team have not been good enough in the last two months.

"We've made some big mistakes and been punished for them. We haven't been able to make the little plays to get over the hump," Curtin said.

"It's unacceptable how many games we haven't been able to find a way to win and the way we've done it has been really disappointing. We've become very fragile, which is uncharacteristic of this group.

"It really comes down with us just finding a way to grind out a win, ugly, pretty, whatever it takes to put it behind us."

Meanwhile, the Revs are one point better off than their opponents, sitting 13th in the table having lost their previous two matches.

They let a lead slip against Orlando City in their 3-1 defeat at the weekend, and head coach Caleb Porter hopes they can put their injury troubles behind them to get back to winning ways.

"We've got to find a way to get some points out of these next two games, even under the circumstances of where we're at," Porter said, as quoted in The Blazing Musket substack.

"And I believe 100% when we're healthy – and we showed it in the four-game stretch – when we have our group healthy, that we can beat anybody in the league."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Philadelphia Union – Daniel Gazdag

Daniel Gazdag has scored five career regular-season goals against New England, more than against any other team in his MLS career.

The five goals are also the most by any player against the Revs since the Hungarian joined MLS in 2021.

New England Revolution – Giacomo Vrioni

Giacomo Vrioni scored New England's lone goal in their loss to Orlando City on Saturday and has now scored six of the club’s last seven goals, including the last three in a row.

MATCH PREDICTION: PHILADELPHIA UNION WIN

The Union have won five of their last six matches against New England (L1, incl. playoffs) dating back to July 2022. The Revs had gone unbeaten in the previous five meetings between the sides (W3 D2).

However, the Union (D4 L6) are winless in 10 straight matches within a single regular season for the first time in club history. Philadelphia have won one of their last 17 matches, but that win came over New England in May.

Meanwhile, none of New England's last 16 MLS matches have ended in a draw (W7 L9) dating back to the start of April. In fact, only one of the Revs’ last 26 league matches dating back to late September last season has ended level.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Philadelphia Union – 48.2%

Draw – 25.9%

New England Revolution – 25.9%

Wilfried Nancy insists Columbus Crew must continue to build on their recent winning run when they travel to face New England Revolution this Sunday. 

The Crew returned to winning ways in style following their defeat to Inter Miami, beating Kansas City 4-0 last time out courtesy of Cucho Hernandez's hat-trick. 

Nancy's side sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference, two points behind Charlotte FC but with the luxury of three games in hand compared to Dean Smith's side. 

Despite their convincing victory in their last MLS fixture, Nancy is looking to replicate the Crew's four-game unbeaten run they enjoyed last month moving forwards.

“It was really important also when I made all the changes that we stay focused on the task,” Nancy said.

“With all the celebration also was not easy because we can switch really quickly.

"I really wanted to help my team to have a clean sheet if possible and to score more goals because this is the level that we want to have. I don't like when we take everything for granted.”

Meanwhile, the Revs also come into the fixture on an impressive run of form, beating high-flyers FC Cincinnati 2-1 away from home to extend their winning streak to four matches in the MLS. 

Caleb Porter's side welcome the Crew to the Gillette Stadium this weekend in search of improving their home form to climb up the Eastern Conference table.

New England have won just three of their last seven games in front of their supporters and know a win will see them move up from 12th in the standings, along with games in hand on many of the surrounding sides. 

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

New England – Cucho Hernandez

Cucho Hernandez scored his third career MLS hat-trick in the Crew’s win over Kansas City on Saturday, with all three coming within his last 20 games.

The Colombian is just the ninth player in MLS history to score three hat-tricks in a span of 20 games.

Columbus Crew – Giacomo Vrioni

It looks set to a battle of both side's goal-scoring forwards, with Giacomo Vrioni looking to continue his hot streak for Nancy's side. 

Vrioni scored both of New England’s goals against Cincinnati on Saturday, the first time a Revolution player has scored more than one goal in a game this season.

MATCH PREDICTION: COLUMBUS CREW WIN

The Crew come into the encounter in much the better form, having won five of their last six league matches (L1) following their win over Sporting Kansas City. 

However, New England also boast an impressive winning streak of their own. Porter's side have won four consecutive matches, having previously won just four of their previous league matches dating back to the beginning of September last year (D4 L14).

And it was the Crew who emerged victorious in the side's last meeting. The win over New England last October ended a string of five straight draws between the sides. Columbus have lost only one of their last 12 against New England (W5 D6) dating back to 2018.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

New England - 27.1%

Draw - 23.9%

Columbus Crew - 49%

Caleb Porter praised his "evolving" New England Revolution side as they prepare to face Vancouver Whitecaps on the back of consecutive wins.

In their opening 13 games, New England only had two wins on the board in the Eastern Conference, sitting bottom with seven points.

Though they still prop up the standings, they are now on 13 points after wins over Nashville SC and New York Red Bulls, with Porter hopeful they can keep building on this momentum.

"The biggest key is our mentality has been stronger," Porter said, as quoted in The Blazing Musket substack.

"We're finding ways to get results. That evolution, I'm very pleased with, so I think, for me, it's unquestionable, we're evolving in every aspect."

"We know we're in a hole, there's no doubt about it. We have to continue to fight our way out, and it's going to take every game, and it's going to take until the end of the season."

Vancouver, meanwhile, are fifth in the Western Conference after back-to-back victories of their own against Sporting Kansas City and Colorado Rapids.

After their mid-season break, Vanni Sartini is aiming to improve on some of the weaknesses shown in the first half of the campaign.

"I think we did okay [in the first half]," he said. "We're doing well. I think that we were doing very well defensively - I'd say the best in my years as head coach here.

"I think we can do a little more in the final third. We are playing well, but we need to be better at finishing the action more. If we can do that, we can aspire to go to the top four positions."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

New England Revolution – Carles Gil

Gil assisted Emmanuel Boateng on the lone goal of the match in New England's win Saturday. The Spaniard has been involved in seven (five goals, two assists) of the Revs’ 12 goals this season.

Vancouver Whitecaps – Ryan Gauld

Gauld assisted both of Vancouver's goals in their win over Colorado on June 1, taking him to 31 assists to go along with 30 goals in regular-season play.

The Scotsman is one of three players (Luciano Acosta, Hany Mukhtar) with at least 30 goals and 30 assists since he joined the MLS in August 2021.

MATCH PREDICTION: DRAW

The Revolution have lost only two of their 11 all-time meetings with Vancouver (W5 D4), including winning four of the six meetings at Gillette Stadium (D1 L1).

New England have also won back-to-back matches for the first time since July last year after winning just two of their first 13 league matches this season. All four of New England's wins this year have been by a one-goal margin.

Meanwhile, the Whitecaps have won back-to-back matches, recording 2-1 wins against Sporting Kansas City and Colorado Rapids. This is Vancouver's sixth set of consecutive wins since the start of last season, though they have not won three league matches in a row since September-October 2022.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

New England Revolution – 38.6%

Draw – 26.5%

Vancouver Whitecaps – 34.9%

Caleb Porter has praised New England Revolution's performances in recent weeks but admitted they are still working hard to improve their finishing, as they prepare to travel to Nashville SC.

New England sit bottom of the Eastern Conference with seven points having won just two of their 13 games so far this season.

More worryingly, the Revolution have scored just nine goals this campaign, and have failed to score in either of their last two defeats.

Porter said he is pleased with the progress his team are showing in their performances, but it would not matter if they could not hit the back of the net.

"It's easier when you can show them the film and there are a lot of positives, but it's tough when you're not getting results because the confidence isn't sky high," the Revs head coach said.

"These guys have had a great mentality and great attitude. They've come every day to training to work and improve, and we've focused a lot this week on the final third. I really feel that's the missing piece right now.

"The players know we're playing well from box-to-box, but to win games, you have to actually score a goal."

Nashville, meanwhile, sit in ninth, occupying one of the playoff spots after a four-game unbeaten run.

Interim head coach Rumbani Munthali earned his first win in charge with a 2-0 victory over FC Cincinnati in midweek.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Nashville – Hany Mukhtar

The Revolution are one of just five teams Hany Mukhtar has faced but never scored against in MLS.

He has only played more games against Cincinnati (six) and Philadelphia (five) without scoring against them than he has against New England (four).

New England – Carles Gil

New England's goal difference dropped to -17 following their defeat to New York City FC last Saturday.

The Revs have scored just nine goals all season, split among four players, with Gil their top scorer on four.

MATCH PREDICTION: NASHVILLE SC WIN

Nashville defeated New England 3-2 in the last meeting between the sides in October 2023. The first five encounters featured five total goals - also split 3-2 - in favour of the Boys in Gold.

Nashville are unbeaten in four straight MLS matches (won two, drawn two) following a 2-0 win over Cincinnati on Wednesday.

It has been nearly a year since the Coyotes have won consecutive league matches, last doing so during a four-match winning run between May and June last season.

The Revolution are the fifth team in the post-shootout era (since 2000) to lose 10 of their first 13 matches of a season, and the first since Montreal in 2018.

No team in the post-shootout era has recorded 11 defeats in their first 14 matches of a season.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Nashville – 51.2%

Draw – 24.8%

New England – 24%

New England Revolution head coach Caleb Porter wants his team to focus on their own game as they prepare to face the New York Red Bulls on Saturday.

The Revs sit bottom of the Eastern Conference standings with just seven points, though they ended a three-match losing run with a narrow 1-0 victory over the Chicago Fire last weekend.

Meanwhile, the Red Bulls sit in fourth, though they are winless in their last four outings after last week's 6-2 thrashing at the hands of a Lionel Messi-inspired Inter Miami.

Asked how he would prepare to face a side coming off the back of such a heavy defeat, Porter turned the focus back to his own team, saying: "I think we have to be more focused on our mentality.

"That was, last week, a point of emphasis: ‘Let’s work on our execution.’ In the game of football, if you do what you want to do, that's half the equation or more, and I thought we did that in the latter stages of the first half and the entire second half, and I think that was a big reason we won the game."

Youngster Esmir Bajraktarevic echoed his coach’s thoughts, noting how the Revs have caused some of their own problems this season.

He said: "I think the main thing is just playing our game. I think when you look back at most of our games, it's kind of us beating ourselves rather than the other way around.

"So, it's kind of just making sure that we're doing the best that we can, and the results will come."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

New York Red Bulls – Dante Vanzeir

Vanzeir recorded his eighth goal contribution of the season with the opening goal against Inter Miami on Saturday, the joint-most for the team this season with Lewis Morgan.

Only one player, Fabio in 2021, has recorded eight or more goal involvements in the Red Bulls’ first 11 matches of a season between 2019 and 2023.

New England Revolution – Tomas Chancalay

Chancalay scored the lone goal in New England’s win over Chicago Fire last Saturday. Since his debut last April, he has scored more MLS goals than any other Revs player, netting eight.

MATCH PREDICTION: NEW YORK RED BULLS WIN

The Red Bulls have lost only one of their last 19 regular-season home matches against New England (12 wins, six draws) dating back to September 2007 – a 3-2 defeat in July 2021 – scoring at least once in all 19 games.

Indeed, the Red Bulls are unbeaten in seven straight home matches in all competitions (four wins, three draws) including last season’s playoffs. New York, who have two wins and two draws on their own turf this year, haven’t started a season unbeaten in their first five home games since 2017.

However, New England ended a 17-match away winless streak in MLS play (incl. playoffs) with a 1-0 win over Chicago Fire on Saturday. The Revs have only won consecutive games on the road once since the start of the 2022 season, doing so in May-June 2022.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

New York Red Bulls – 44.4%

Draw – 28.7%

New England Revolution – 26.9%

Kellyn Acosta says the Chicago Fire need to be more precise with their ball progression if they are to end their barren run and begin to climb the MLS standings.

Frank Klopas' team sit 12th in the Eastern Conference and have failed to win – or even find the net – in three matches ahead of Saturday's clash with the New England Revolution. 

Chicago scored nine goals in their first five MLS matches in 2024 but have since netted two in their last five, and midfielder Acosta says composure is the key to improving their attacking output.

"It's a combination of moving the ball back to front and finding our forwards," Acosta said. 

"I feel like we've got to get them the ball in dangerous areas where they are bringing out their qualities, and I think we have not done a good job of progressing the ball to them."

The Revs, meanwhile, sit bottom of the East with just four points through their first nine matches under Caleb Porter, being thrashed 4-1 by a Lionel Messi-inspired Inter Miami side last time out.

Nacho Gil has joined several other New England players on a lengthy injury list, and Porter says the team must be cautious as they navigate a route through a testing spell. 

"If we're good with our planning… you can't avoid some injuries, but with soft tissue injuries, you can avoid a mistake," Porter said. 

"The medical staff, the sports science staff, they'll have a plan to reintegrate these guys where they can hit the ground running."

PLAYERS TO WATCH 

Chicago Fire – Brian Gutierrez

The Fire failed to record a shot on target in last week's goalless draw at home to Atlanta United, the third time they have done so since the start of the 2022 campaign. No other team has done so more than once in that time.

Gutierrez was limited to the role of substitute for that game, but as Chicago's leading scorer with three league goals this year, he will surely come in to start this one.

New England Revolution – Carles Gil

Carles Gil leads all Revs players for goals (three) and chances created (27) so far this season. None of his team-mates have laid on more than 11 chances this term (Tomas Chancalay). 

MATCH PREDICTION – DRAW

New England are winless in 17 MLS away matches (five draws, 12 defeats, including playoffs), in a run dating back to May 2023. Their longest ever winless run on the road in MLS is 18 matches between September 2016 to September 2017.

However, they may fancy their chances of taking something from Saturday's match, with Chicago only having two wins through their first 10 games of the season.

This is the sixth straight season in which they have failed to win at least three of their first 10 games of an MLS campaign. No other team in MLS history has done so in more than three straight years.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Chicago Fire – 37.7%

New England Revolution – 33.4%

Draw – 28.9%