Jordan Morris and Albert Rusnák lead Seattle to 2-0 victory over New England

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FOXBOROUGH, MA – The New England Revolution (6-1-12, 19 pts.) were defeated 2-0 versus Seattle Sounders (8-7-7, 31 pts.) in an MLS match on Saturday night.

The match kicked off at Lumen Field to a crowd of 25,000.

The team started their lineup in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Aljaž Ivačič starting in net with a backline of (left back) DeJuan Jones, (center backs) Xavier Arreaga, and Dave Romney, along with (right back) Brandon Bye. The midfield spots were manned by Ian Harkes (left defensive midfield) and Matt Polster (right defensive midfield), with Carles Gil appeared ahead of them (central attacking midfield). The forward roles were manned by Jack Panayotou (left wing), Esmir Bajraktarević (right wing), and Giacomo Vrioni as the lone striker.

Midfielder Dylan Borrero was set to start the match but was replaced by Jack Panayotou due to a quad injury.

Midfielder Carles Gil were unavailable for tonight’s match due to injury.

In Carles Gil’s absence, midfielder Matt Polster wore the captain’s armband.

The match kicked off with New England starting from the center circle and quickly advancing the ball into Seattle’s defensive third.

Entering the 15th minute, Seattle took the early lead.

Midfielder Léo Chú headed the ball toward forward #13 Jordan Morris who then settled the ball for forward #11 Albert Rusnák. He then sent a through-ball for Morris who took on Dave Romney and bullied his way all the way into the box for a shot into the top right corner for the 1-0 advantage.

Seattle’s next chance came in the 20th minute when forward #14 Paul Rothrock’s effort took a deflection and was caught by goalkeeper Aljaž Ivačič.

Less than one minute later, New England had their first chance when Brandon Bye’s cross was cleared by defender #14 Alex Roldan.

In the 23rd minute, Revolution defender Xavier Arreaga was issued a yellow card. Due to this yellow card, Arreaga is suspended from playing in New England’s next match due to yellow card accumulation.

New England’s next major chance came in the 34th minute when an effort by Esmir Bajraktarevic was blocked. The ball fell to Giacomo Vrioni which then was saved by goalkeeper #24 Stefan Frei and fell back to Esmir, whose effort went high and wide.

Ian Harkes had an effort of his own in the 40th minute, however, goalkeeper #24 Stefan Frei palmed it over the bar.

After the initial 45+1 minutes, the match entered halftime with Seattle ahead 1-0.

Prior to the start of the second half, Seattle Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer made his first change of the match by replacing midfielder #23 Léo Chú Léo Chú with midfielder #21 Reed Baker-Whiting.

The second half began with Seattle building out of the back to start the second half.

New England had the first moment of the second half when Giacomo Vrioni’s long-distance effort was deflected and saved by goalkeeper #24 Stefan Frei.

Seattle’s first chance came in the 54th minute when midfielder #6 João Paulo’s long-distance effort was met with a save by goalkeeper Aljaž Ivačič.

Entering the 61st minute, Revolution head coach Caleb Porter made his first change of the match by replacing Brandon Bye with Ryan Spaulding. Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer made his second change of the match by replacing forward #14 Paul Rothrock with forward #9 Raúl Ruidíaz.

Seattle then had a spectacular opportunity from the corner kick which was met with a fantastic save by goalkeeper Aljaž Ivačič.

In the 67th minute, Revolution head coach Caleb Porter made his second change of the match by replacing Jack Panayotou with Tommy McNamara.

Seattle had yet another chance when forward #9 Raúl Ruidíaz’s effort went just wide of the post.

In the 79th minute, Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer made his third change of the match by replacing midfielder #6 João Paulo with defender #16 Alex Roldán.

Entering the 81st minute, Seattle added to their lead.

Following a defensive giveaway, forward #11 Albert Rusnák unleashed a right-footed shot into the bottom left corner of the goal to add to Seattle’s advantage.

Seattle had yet another chance in the 82nd minute that was met with a diving stop by

In the 86th minute, Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer made his final two changes of the match by replacing midfielders #18 Obed Vargas and #11 Albert Rusnák with midfielder #8 Josh Atencio and forward #10 Pedro De La Vega.

Less than one minute later, Revolution head coach Caleb Porter made his final three changes of the match by replacing Giacomo Vrioni, Noel Buck and Xavier Arreaga with Bobby Wood, Marcos Dias and Henry Kessler. This is Marcos Dias’ New England Revolution first team debut.

In the 89th minute, Revolution midfielder Matt Polster was issued a yellow card for fouling midfielder #10 Pedro De La Vega.

In the 90+4 minute, Seattle forward #13 Jordan Morris was issued a yellow card for fouling Ryan Spaulding.

After the 90+6 minutes, the match concluded with Seattle holding on for the 2-0 victory.

With the result, New England drop to 12th place in the MLS Eastern Conference. They are currently 5 points out of a playoff spot with 2 games in hand.

Caleb Porter and the New England Revolution (6-1-12, 19 pts.) return home to face Eastern Conference side Orlando City SC (7-6-9, 27 pts.). The match will kick off at Gillette at 7:30 p.m. EST on Saturday, July 13th. For more MLS content, you can find it on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app.

For more of Rick Wilson’s photos, you can view them at this link.

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About Author

Hello! My name is Caleb Pongratz. I am a 23-year-old journalist that covers Major League Soccer, MLS NEXT Pro, USL, USL Championship, USL League One, USL League Two & the United States Men's National Team. I'm originally from Hanover, Massachusetts and currently reside in Boston, Massachusetts. Schooling: • Hanover High School (2016-2020) • Suffolk University (2020-2024) - Graduated cum laude with a Bachelor's Degree in Communications - Broadcast Journalism. Career within Soccer: • Played club soccer from U6-U18 (Select FC, Boston Bolts, Liverpool International Academy) • Captain of Hanover High School Boys' Soccer (High School) • Played NCAA Division 3 Soccer for Suffolk University in the Coastal Commonwealth Conference for 4 seasons • C Licensed US Soccer Coach • Licensed US Soccer Referee • SafeSport & Intro to Safe & Healthy Playing Environments Certified

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