New England Revolution vs. Montreal Impact | 2018 MLS Match Preview

New England Revolution vs. Montreal Impact
2018 MLS Regular Season – Week 6
Gillette Stadium – Foxborough
7:30 pm ET – April 6, 2018
WATCH: MLS LIVE | TS1, TVAS in Canada

A week ago, the New England Revolution did what they only accomplished once a year ago — win away from Gillette Stadium — and now they return to the comfy confines of “Fortress Foxboro” looking to extend their unbeaten streak to 11 consecutive matches.

The Montreal Impact also celebrated road glory for the first time this season, defeating Seattle Sounders FC, 1-0. That means their two wins so far in 2018 have come against last year’s MLS Cup finalists.

The Revs are not only looking to extend their home unbeaten streak, but also stretch their winning streak against the Montreal to five games. They’ve outscored the Impact 10-3 in their last four victories.

• Seltzer: What you missed while Zlatan happened
• Garde: PSG outcast Ben Arfa "welcome here"
• Penilla earns second straight MLS Team of the Week honors

New England Revolution  

New England coach Brad Friedel tinkered with his lineup again, bringing Luis Caicedo in for his first start as part of a three-man central midfield, playing alongside Scott Caldwell with Wilfried Zahibo as the No. 6 and pushing Diego Fagundez out wide.

Cristian Penilla continued to show his class on the right wing, setting up Teal Bunbury and adding an insurance goal of his own in the second half to help lead the Revs (2-1-1) to an impressive 2-0 win over 10-man Houston Saturday night at BBVA Compass Stadium.

Penilla was named to the MLS Team of the Week presented by Audi for Week 5. It is the second straight week the Ecuadorian winger has earned that honor.

“Cristian Penilla, we talk about in almost every interview,” Friedel said after the match. “We knew what we were signing, we scouted him for a while and he’s an exceptional talent and you’re starting to really see his personality come out on and off the field.”

• Suspended: None
• Suspended after next caution: None
• International duty: None
• Injury Report: OUT: M - Isaac Angking (illness), GK - Cody Cropper (concussion)

Projected Starting XI
(4-2-3-1, right to left)
GK: Matt Turner — Andrew Farrell, Jalil Anibaba, Claude Dielna, Gabriel Somi — Scott Caldwell, Wilfried Zahibo — Cristian Penilla, Luis Caicedo, Diego Fagundez — Teal Bunbury

• Notes: Kelyn Rowe has scored six goals against Montreal. He has more than three against just one other MLS club (Chicago-4). … New England are unbeaten in 10 consecutive league home games, including eight wins. They have outscored their opponents 21-8 in those 10 games.

Montreal Impact      

Like New England, Montreal (2-2-0) were able to take advantage of a first-half sending off as Seattle outside back Kelvin Leerdam received a red card for slapping Daniel Lovitz in the face five minutes from halftime.

Jeisson Vargas struck on the hour mark and Ignacio Piatti picked up his third assist of the season to lead the Impact to a 1-0 victory over the struggling Sounders.

“I’m quite pleased with the result, and I’m quite pleased with the way we played the game,” Montreal coach Remi Garde said after the game. “We went under pressure in the second half, even though we were a man up. We knew Seattle was a good team, especially in home games. We have these two games in a row, so we’re going to try to keep this momentum.”

• Suspended: None 
• Suspended after next caution: None
• International duty: None
• Injury Report: OUT: D - Zakaria Diallo (ruptured Achilles tendon), D - Kyle Fisher (tibia)

Projected Starting XI
(3-1-4-2, right to left)
GK: Evan Bush — Victor Cabrera, Rod Fanni, Jukka Raitala — Samuel Piette — Chris Duvall, Ken Krolicki, Saphir Taider, Daniel Lovitz — Jeisson Vargas, Ignacio Piatti

• Notes: Daniel Lovitz is averaging 1.5 chances created per 90, the fifth-highest total of any defender with at least three appearances. … Montreal’s 1-0 win over Seattle last weekend snapped a five-game road losing streak in regular season action. Montreal have only won four of their last 20 regular-season road games, dating back to the start of last season.

All-Time Series

• Overall: New England Revolution 7 wins, 21 goals … Montreal Impact 7 wins, 22 goals … Ties 2
• At New England: Revolution 3 wins, 8 goals … Impact 3 wins, 7 goals … Ties 1
• Last meeting at New England: New England Revolution 1, Montreal Impact 0 (Sept. 9, 2017)

Referees

Referee: Jose Carlos Rivero
Assistant Referees: Brian Poeschel, Gianni Facchini
4th Official: Nima Saghafi
VAR: Fotis Bazakos