Photo/Kari Heistad
FOXBORO, Mass. – The New England Revolution couldn’t secure their first victory of the season in Saturday afternoon’s 0-0 draw with DC United at Gillette Stadium, but are nevertheless still unbeaten thanks in part to the performance of their captain, Jose Goncalves.
The Portuguese center back put in an intrepid performance against United, not only through his defensive skill and ability to keep the back line organized, but also with his vision and tactical awareness.
Those characteristics are sought after in Major League Soccer, especially because Goncalves, 30, has been able to channel his abilities on both sides of the pitch.
In Saturday’s draw, he’d often help win possession back near his own penalty area, then make a 20-yard run up the field and try to open up space for one of his teammates ran than going for a simple, standard pass.
“If I have space in front of me, I try to get closer to the opponents’ half and try to create something,” said Goncalves, who has recorded four goals and as many assists since joining the Revolution from Switzerland’s FC Sion in 2013.
“Usually teams don’t expect a central defender to come up – it’s always surprising if you do that – who knows, sometimes you can help the attack and create something special.
“That’s why we go forward…It’s a modern game.”
Two weeks into the season, Goncalves’ contributions to his team’s attack and defense shouldn’t be overlooked. He helped set by Diego Fagundez’s goal in last Sunday’s 3-3 tie against the Houston Dynamo, then followed up by keeping the back line organized against a dynamic and speedy DC United attack in Saturday’s home opener.
DC’s bread and butter was a swift counter attack, led by strikers Alvaro Saborio and Chris Rolfe, though Goncalves managed to keep both players in check without too much trouble.
“Jose had a great game,” Revolution coach Jay Heaps said. “Going into the game, we needed our center backs to be diligent because DC does a good job countering.
“If you’re organized and dealing with it before it happens then you’re in a much better place – we were proactive, not reactive – but Jose, certainly, had a very good game.”
That said, Goncalves would have preferred the offense to breakthrough, not just to take the pressure off the defense, but more importantly to ensure three points rather than just one.
In addition to Goncalves’ ventures up-field, he also headed a Chris Tierney corner kick off the turf and over the crossbar early in the first half, when all nine of the Revolution’s shots went wide. It didn’t get much better in the second half, though United keeper Travis Worra had to make three saves and Revs midfielder Lee Nguyen hit the crossbar.
So the team, Goncalves included, is hoping for a different result when they travel to the Philadelphia Union next Sunday.
“We plateaued and we knew we wanted to do well in the first game of the season at home,” Goncalves added. “I thought the team defended well, we create a lot. Maybe we need a better final touch to get those three points.”
If you want to reach Julian, email him at julianccardillo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @juliancardillo
