New England Revolution vs. DC United | 2020 MLS Match Preview

2020 MLS Regular Season – Week 22
New England Revolution vs. D.C. United
Gillette Stadium – Foxborough
November 1 – 7:30 PM ET

STREAMING: MLS LIVE on ESPN+ in US; on DAZN in Canada

LOCAL TV: NBC Sports Boston, WJLA 24/7 News

D.C. United have emerged from the Eastern Conference basement to move within two points of the playoff line and they can potentially put themselves in postseason position when they meet the New England Revolution at Gillette Stadium Sunday night.

The Revs (7W-6L-8D) are winless in their last three following a 1-0 loss to the New York Red Bulls Wednesday, but still clinched a berth in the 2020 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs after FC Dallas defeated Inter Miami CF. D.C. United (5W-10L-6D) defeated Columbus Crew SC 1-0 Wednesday night at Audi Field for their third consecutive victory.

This is the fourth meeting this season, but first at Gillette Stadium. The Revs have won twice at Audi Field, including 2-0 in the last meeting Sept. 27 and the teams played to a 1-1 draw at the MLS is Back Tournament in Orlando in July.

New England Revolution

The Revs walked off the field at Red Bull Arena disappointed to have conceded a goal late in a 1-0 loss when all they needed was a draw to clinch their playoff berth. Still, thanks to FC Dallas' win over Inter Miami, it was mission accomplished for Bruce Arena's squad, which are winless in their last three, but getting healthy at the right time.

"We want to finish as high as possible on the table to put ourselves in the best position possible going into the playoffs," Tommy McNamara said, when asked of the importance of the final two games of the regular season. "On top of that, we want to build some momentum going into it. I think our performances have been pretty well in the past few weeks. But we just haven’t quite been able to figure out how to get three points, whether it’s something defensively or something offensively. We really need to get ourselves over the line in these next two games. That’ll be important for us.”

Updated team roster
Injury Report:
- OUT: Luis Caicedo (M) - right knee injury
- OUT: Cristian Penilla (F) - left foot fracture
Suspended: None
Suspended after next caution: Matt Polster (M)
International duty: None

D.C. United

Quite the story is building on the Beltway with D.C. United's late-season surge toward the playoffs. There's still more work to do, but a 1-0 win over Crew SC Wednesday was the team's third straight and its now four without a defeat for a team that had lost five straight in a nine-match winless streak that resulted in Ben Olsen's departure as head coach.

"I mean, we just won our third game in a row ... I feel like everybody kind of forgot about us and who we are," said Julian Gressel, who scored the lone goal against Columbus. "We've kind of embraced that over the last few weeks. We know we're going to continue to try and put ourselves in the best spot possible. And I think we're right in the mix now and we're excited, man. We're a group that believes, that's on the same page. We believe in each other. No matter who plays, no matter who comes in off the bench, everybody's working for each other and that's exactly what we want. We'll see what happens in the next two games."

As for the search for Olsen's permanent replacement, D.C. United have reportedly had informal talks with former US women's national team coach Jill Ellis, among others, about the vacancy.

Updated team roster
Injury Report:
- OUT: Paul Arriola (M) - ACL injury
- OUT: Mohammed Abu (M) - undisclosed injury
- OUT: Ulises Segura (M) - undisclosed injury
- OUT: Felipe (M) - ACL injury
- OUT: Steve Birnbaum (D) - undisclosed injury
- OUT: Chris Odoi-Atsem (D) - concussion protocol
Suspended: Frederic Brillant (D)
Suspended after next caution: Junior Moreno (M)
International duty: None