Revolution II’s playoff run ends due to last minute goal in MLS NEXT Pro Eastern Conference Finals

FOXBOROUGH, MA— The New England Revolution II were defeated by Columbus Crew 2 1-0 on Saturday night.

The match kicked off at 5:00 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts

Tonight's full matchday roster ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/zVbAikoM8I

— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) October 14, 2023

The team started their lineup in a 4-3-3 formation with goalkeeper Nico Campuzano starting in the net with a backline of (left back) Colby Quiñónes, (center backs) Pierre Cayet and Victor Souza, along with (right back) Santiago Suarez. The midfield consisted of Patrick Leal (left), Jake Rozhansky (center), and Lucas Maciel (right). The forward roles were manned by Peyton miller (left), Malcolm Fry (right), and Jordan Adebayo-Smith (central) as the lone striker.

Goalkeeper Jacob Jackson and midfielder Jack Panayotou were unavailable as they were with the first team in Nashville.

Midfielder Esmir Bajraktarević was unavailable as he was away on international duty with the United States Men’s National Team.

Marcos Dias and Joshua Bolma were both unavailable due to injuries.

The ECF XI ? pic.twitter.com/UmGyTPbGMq

— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) October 14, 2023

The match began with Columbus starting from the center circle. They immediately elected to go forward and attempt to counter-attack the unready Revolution right from the start.

Nashville’s first moment of the match came in the 5th minute when #10 Thomas Roberts right footed shot was met with a save by Nico Campuzano.

New England’s first moment of the match came in the 12th minute when Jake Rozhansky’s right footed shot was a bit too high from a direct free kick.

The 33rd minute was when Nashville’s next chance came as #22 Marco Micaletto’s right footed effort was just high over the bar.

After the 45 minutes, the match entered halftime level at 0-0.

Scoreless through 45' pic.twitter.com/EpbxCOi7Lr

— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) October 14, 2023

Entering the second half, Revolution II head coach Rob Beccerra made his first change of the match by replacing Lucas Maciel with Noble Okello.

The second half began with New England starting from the center circle. The team elected for the ball to be played to Pierre Cayet, who elected to play the ball to the left side to build out of the back.

Nashville’s second chance came in the 54th minute when #8 Clay Holstad’s right footed effort missed just over the bar following a corner kick.

New England’s first chance came in the 60th minute as Jordan Adebayo-Smith’s breakaway chance was met with a stellar save by #60 Stanislav Lapkes.

Nashville’s second chance came in the 63rd minute when #8 Clay Holstad’s right footed effort missed just right of the right post.

Entering the 67th minute, New England had yet another spectacular chance when Victor Souza’s headed effort went just wide of the goal.

In the 75th minute, Revolution II head coach Rob Beccerra made his second change of the match by replacing Patrick Leal with Olger Escobar.

Just one minute later, Noble Okello had a spectacular long shot that went just over the bar.

Entering the 83rd minute, Revolution II head coach Rob Beccerra made his third change of the match by replacing Patrick Leal with Brandonn Bueno.

As the match entered the 90th minute, Columbus took the 1-0 lead late.

The moment we knew we were going back to the Cup ?

Take another look at Gibran Rayo's last minute finish in the Eastern Conference Final that secured us a spot in the 2023 @MLSNEXTPRO Cup!#Crew96 | #VamosColumbus pic.twitter.com/KfXZInDqBQ

— Columbus Crew 2 (@ColumbusCrew2) October 17, 2023

Following a multitude of blocked shots, Columbus Crew 2 forward #18 Gibran Rayo managed to get in-behind past Ogler Escobar, who completely left his marker and allowed Rayo to take the deflected ball in the box and rifle a shot past Nico Campuzano, who was left with no help. A complete gut punch to the Revolution squad.

Moments after the goal, Revolution head coach Rob Beccerra made his fourth and final substitution by replacing Peyton Miller with Weverton.

After the 90+1 minute, the match ended with Columbus Crew 2 victorious 1-0.