The New England Revolution demonstrated the value of home-field advantage Saturday night, mounting a second-half comeback to defeat the Columbus Crew 2-1 in Foxborough, Mass., maintaining a perfect record at home while continuing to struggle on the road.
Dor Turgeman scored the equalizer early in the second half and Carles Gil converted a penalty kick in the 85th minute to secure the victory for New England, which improved to 4-3-0 on the season. The Revolution have now won their first four home matches under first-year coach Marko Mitrović, outscoring opponents 12-2 in those contests.
Tale of Two Venues
The stark contrast between New England's home dominance and road performance highlights the challenges facing the franchise. While the Revolution have been formidable at home, they have lost all three away matches by a combined 8-2 score, revealing vulnerabilities that opponents have exploited outside Foxborough.
Columbus, which fell to 1-4-3 with the loss, took an early 1-0 lead in the 25th minute when Max Arfsten scored his second goal of the season on assists from Diego Rossi and Dániel Gazdag. It marked the first assist of the campaign for both Rossi and Gazdag.
Second-Half Surge
Turgeman scored his first goal for New England in the 54th minute after taking a pass from Luca Langoni, leveling the match and shifting momentum to the home side. Turgeman had previously scored three goals in three appearances last season.
Langoni's assist on the equalizer brought his season total to six, trailing only the seven of league-leader Son Heung-min of Los Angeles FC. Langoni had two assists in each of his first two seasons with the Revolution.
Gil's penalty kick winner came after Turgeman drew a foul on Rudy Camacho in the penalty area. Matt Turner made three saves for New England, including three in the first half alone. Patrick Schulte saved two shots for Columbus, with one save coming in the first half.
Looking Ahead
Columbus will look to rebound when it hosts the Los Angeles Galaxy on Wednesday. New England faces its next road test when it visits Atlanta United on Wednesday, seeking to break its away losing streak.
Why This Matters:
The Revolution's perfect home record under new leadership demonstrates the immediate return on investment in coaching changes and roster development, while their road struggles suggest areas requiring attention. For Columbus, the 1-4-3 start represents a concerning trend for a franchise that needs consistent performance to justify its operational costs and maintain fan engagement. The stark home-road disparity for New England raises questions about travel logistics, roster depth, and the sustainability of relying heavily on home results in a league where road performance determines playoff positioning and revenue-generating postseason opportunities.