Weather woes toss wrench in Revs’ plans
The itinerary was simple and routine for a short Revolution road trip. Train in the morning. Hop on a quick flight to Philadelphia in the afternoon. Rest up ahead of the season opener against the Union tonight.
The weather did not cooperate with those plans.
A nor’easter brought heavy rain and strong wind gusts throughout New England and disrupted air travel. The lengthy list of canceled flights out of T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, R.I., included the one scheduled to take the Revs to Philly.
Instead of departing as anticipated on a commercial flight, the Revs are expected to fly to Philly by charter this morning ahead of the 7 p.m. season opener at Talen Energy Stadium.
The weather-related issues added another wrinkle as the Revs prepared for their first outing after a series of offseason changes.
New head coach Brad Friedel and his technical staff spent most of the preseason putting the framework in place to change how the Revs operate with and without the ball, and forge the mentality necessary to obtain results regularly.
Those efforts are expected to pave the way for a higher tempo and a more expansive approach going forward. The injection of pace — highlighted by the arrivals of left back Gabriel Somi and winger Cristian Penilla — provides the ability to break quickly and close the opposition down effectively and quickly when possession is lost.
It is a collective, collaborative approach designed to heap pressure on the opponent and provide opportunities in the final third.
In this first test against the Union, the Revs find their weaknesses from a season ago — a leaky defense (61 goals conceded in 34 games) and a poor record away from home (1-13-3) — under immediate scrutiny.
This is a new season and era, though. The initial signs offer encouragement, according to Friedel.
“We’re going to try to go into Philadelphia with a winning mentality that we’ve tried to promote during preseason,” Friedel said earlier this week. “We’re not going to change the way we’re playing just because we’re going on the road. We’ll see what happens, but hopefully we’ll instill a winning mentality on the road and at home.”
Davies calls it a career
Former Revolution and BC forward Charlie Davies announced his retirement from pro soccer yesterday. Davies, 31, finished his career with Philadelphia. The exBrooks School star and U.S. national team standout spent parts of four seasons with the Revs (2013-16) after recovering from serious injuries suffered in a 2009 auto accident.