FOXBOROUGH, MA— Heading into the 2023 season, the New England Revolution II (3-0-0, 9 pts.) are off to a hot start in the MLS NEXT Pro campaign, and much of their success can be attributed to the early success of the Revolution Academy pathway program. One player, 19-year-old forward Brandonn Bueno spoke to me regarding his time through the program and his journey to the Revolution II’s.
Forward Brandonn Bueno (42) poses with forward Malcolm Fry (89) after they became the seventh and eighth players to sign from the Revolution Academy. Image Courtesy of New England Revolution II.
Following the 2022 campaign, on November 7th, 2022, The Revolution II had announced that they had signed 19-year-old forward, Brandonn Bueno to an MLS NEXT Pro professional contract from the Revolution Academy ahead of the 2023 campaign. This official signing made Brandonn the eighth player to ascend from the Revolution Academy to the Revolution II since 2020.
Bueno made strides in the Revolution Academy and attributed his recent club success to his time in the academy, along with being a crucial part of the U19 squad that won the MLS NEXT CUP championship in 2022.
THE U-19S ARE MLS NEXT CUP CHAMPIONS! pic.twitter.com/txV24xfhO8
— New England Revolution Academy (@NERevsAcademy) July 4, 2022
The forward was quick to note that, “Winning the U19 academy’s championship run was a life changing experience and a moment that I will never forget.”
“During the regular season, we had a poor season as we would get players from the U17s coming to train with us, so it was difficult with the mix of guys who didn’t train together a lot… after the season we went to Maryland for the MLS NEXT FLEX Tournament and we did decent there, but since all of the teams in our conference qualified, we got into MLS NEXT CUP on the last spot. We had to win 1 or 2 games and were depending on other teams and luckily, we did our part against Seacoast and when we got to Dallas, our mindset was being a champion, and that’s what we worked toward as a unit, and it was a great outcome.”
Forward Brandonn Bueno (33) celebrates winning the U19 MLS NEXT CUP. Image Courtesy of New England Revolution Academy.
Regarding the success of the Revolution Academy and the pathway program, Bueno stated that the academy has been perfect and has helped move his career along a good path.
“It takes a while for young players to jump from the academy to the first team because it’s an enormous difference physically, mentally, and tactically. It’s been good that the gap between end and end is there and gives more opportunities for players to show themselves. Everyone’s goal is to play for the first team in the future, and I think that it attests to the success we have seen so far.”
Brandonn Bueno (42) attempts to dribble in his MLS NEXT Pro debut on July 31, 2022, versus Toronto FC II. Image Courtesy of New England Revolution II.
Following his time with the U19’s in 2022, Bueno was selected to train with the Revolution II and managed to log 100 minutes in 7 appearances. He made his MLS NEXT Pro debut on July 31st, 2022, versus Toronto FC II’s at Gillette Stadium.
“After we had won in Dallas, me and a couple of the boys were back full time with the second team, and I remember that week, someone in the squad had gotten injured and opened up a spot. I had a great week of training that week and I was hoping to be able to get a debut.”. Bueno noted, ” The day of the game I got a little nervous because I had just re-imagined all the hard work and things I went through, and it was a special moment for me. After I got on the field and got my first touch on the ball, it just felt like another day for me.”.
With Bueno entering 2023 penned to a professional deal, he stated that the preseason is a major factor of the current success of Revolution II.
“Preseason was good because we signed a few new guys, and we had time to build up chemistry. We had enough time for the coaches to input what they wanted us to do for the year and so far, we have been able to execute and hopefully we can keep on this winning streak…”
Regarding important notes from the coaches, Bueno stated that Head Coach Clint Peay tells all of the players to, “Be Brave.”… “Coach tells us ‘Don’t be afraid to make any mistakes and if we do, what is the next soccer option to fix it.’ “.
On April 10th, 2023, Bueno made his 2023 debut for the Revolution II, coming in as a substitute.
Bueno converts from the spot for ?️!
5-1 @NERevolution2 pic.twitter.com/9SdYoUV0LA
— MLS NEXT Pro (@MLSNEXTPRO) April 10, 2023
Regarding his time on the pitch and his 2023 debut, Bueno stated, “I was pretty frustrated at the beginning… I had a piercing in my ear and the referee wasn’t letting me in the game earlier than I had been expected to enter and the piercing wasn’t coming off, so it annoyed me that I was getting less minutes because of it, but it all worked itself out in the end.”
Just 4 minutes after subbing into the match, Bueno drew the penalty after being taken down in the penalty area.
“The penalty came off a counterattack… Esmir had gotten the ball on the left and played Marcos on the right. As soon as he played that ball, I saw two defenders step up to him (Dias) and I knew he was going to play a split pass. Unluckily, the ball went behind me, and as I was going toward the ball I scanned quickly to my right and saw the defender coming, and as the ball went behind me, I waited for the defender to come and hit me… As soon as I hit the ground, I never really thought about looking for the ball so fast.”
Following the call, Bueno stepped up and buried the penalty in the bottom right corner. His first career professional goal.
Forward Brandonn Bueno (33) celebrates his first professional goal with the Revolution II after scoring in a 5-1 victory over Philadelphia Union II on April 10th. Image Courtesy of New England Revolution II.
Reflecting on the goal, Bueno stated, “After I scored, I had a lot of mixed emotions that were filled with excitement. It was my birthday the day before, so it made it even more special.”.
Really cool moment yesterday with #NERevsII. @NERevsAcademy product Brandonn Bueno turned 19 on Sunday, and had about 20 friends and family members at game vs. Union II. Came on in 84th min, drew a penalty, then converted for his first pro goal. #NERevs pic.twitter.com/iP01APVV3G
— Jeff Lemieux (@jeff_lemieux) April 11, 2023
New England Revolution senior staff writer and editor Jeff Lemieux stated on twitter that Bueno had 20 friends and family members at the game.
When speaking on his family and friends being there for that moment, Bueno stated, ” It was a great weekend. Everyone there was proud. A lot of them their dream of scoring and living through that moment as well… they live with me through my day by day, so it was a great feeling.”.
Bueno stated that he isn’t going to remain caught up in that moment and his mind is quickly shifted onto the next task. Bueno stated that making the playoffs is the team’s main goal, along with a personal goal of obtaining more playing opportunities. “I want to hopefully become a starter soon and help my team log more wins, hopefully I can continue to do that, and hopefully we can continue our path to success.”.
For Revolution II fans, the team’s general admission tickets go on sale on Friday, March 24th beginning at $10 per match or $98 for a full-season plan including all 14 home games. Revolution Season Members have access to discounted Revolution II tickets. Fans can visit Revolutionsoccer.net/tickets for more information.
The New England Revolution II (3-0-0, 9pts.) will look to continue their hot start in their 2023 MLS NEXT Pro campaign as the squad heads out to Columbus to face Columbus Crew II (1-0-1, 4pts) on Sunday, April 16th at Historic Crew Stadium at 1:00 p.m. All MLS, MLS NEXT Pro matches will be available through the new MLS Streaming Service on the Apple TV app.
New England Revolution
