Revolution Clinch Playoff Berth For First Time Since 2015
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (CBS/AP) — Teal Bunbury and Gustavo Bou scored, Matt Turner had his second consecutive shutout and the New England Revolution beat New York City FC 2-0 on Sunday to earn a playoff spot.
New York City clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs after the game when the Columbus Crew beat the Philadelphia Union 2-0.
Turner finished with six saves, including a diving stop in the 54th minute, a leaping one-handed save in the 63rd and another diving save in the 85th.
Teal Bunbury gave the Revolution a 1-0 lead in the 66th minute. Penilla cut back to evade a defender on the right side and then rolled a pass to a charging Bunbury who chipped a bending first-timer into the corner of the net.
Gustavo Bou lobbed a shot from 30 yards outs over the outstretched hand of goalkeeper Sean Johnson into the net to cap the scoring in the 89th.
It has been quite the turnaround for New England (11-10-12), as the Revs have just one loss in their last nine games. After opening the season with a 2-8-2 record, the Revolution have gone 9-2-10 to secure their first postseason berth since 2015. That run included an 11-game unbeaten streak from May 11 through July 27, tying a club record.
They now head into the postseason with the league's all-time leader in postseason coaching wins in Bruce Arena, who has five MLS Cup titles to his name.
New England's first-round opponent will be determined after next weekend's regular season finale at Atlanta United. The Revolution could jump as high as sixth place in the standings before the postseason begins.
(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)