New England Revolution
New England started well, but couldn’t sustain the momentum.
Luca Langoni and Carles Gil during the Revolution’s 3-1 loss to St. Louis City. Via New England Revolution
March 22, 2026 | 9:58 AM
4 minutes to read
The Revolution lost to St. Louis City SC 3-1 on the road on Saturday.
A quick start from New England led to a 1-0 lead thanks to right back Ilay Feingold, but a trio of unanswered goals from St. Louis ensured that the night ended with a third defeat in four games to open the 2026 season.
Here are a few takeaways:
One (mis)step forward, one step back?
Following the somewhat stunning 6-1 win over FC Cincinnati in last week’s home opener, the Revolution set out in an identical starting lineup against St. Louis on Saturday. Once again, first-year head coach Marko Mitrović went with a version of 4-2-3-1, with Alhassan Yusuf and Luca Langoni deployed as asymmetrical outside midfielders (Yusuf drifting inside into more of a central midfield position at times, Langoni staying much wider as a traditional winger).
It was a system that initially flummoxed St. Louis, with the visiting Revolution creating a bevy of chances in the opening 18 minutes. Feingold probably should have done better with a prime opportunity in the 12th minute when he was fed a perfect pass from midfield captain Carles Gil right in front of the goal. The young right back simply missed on his attempted shot, and the moment passed.
Feingold found almost immediate redemption less than two minutes later when positioned himself to be on the end of some quality New England buildup. Gil’s clever pass put Langoni into space near the left end line. The Argentine winger whipped in a cross that center forward Dor Turgeman (running to the near post) let pass through his legs back to the center of the box, where Feingold was waiting to apply a steady finish.
For a few minutes after scoring, the Revolution looked the more likely of the two teams to get the next goal as well, with New England’s attack continuing to look dangerous in transition.
Yet for all of those positives, it represented a highwater point for New England’s night. St. Louis grew into the game, forcing turnovers in the Revolution side of the field. This triggered the equalizer, when New England midfielder Brooklyn Raines was dispossessed in the almost instant lead-up to Simon Becher’s tying goal in the 29th minute.
The Revolution were unable to recover the attacking initiative for the rest of the night, though remained competitive until Marcel Hartel’s spectacular insurance goal in the 83rd minute put things out of reach.
OH MY MARCEL HARTEL 🤯
What a hit from the @stlCITYsc midfielder! pic.twitter.com/trMKSjoO4J
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 22, 2026
The outcome is a sign that New England has a long way to go before becoming a consistent winner. St. Louis hadn’t won at home since last August, signifying perhaps a missed opportunity to pick up at least a point.
Set piece setback
A week after scoring multiple goals from set pieces and leveraging it to amass six goals in the rout of Cincinnati, New England conceded the go-ahead goal at the end of the first half from a corner kick.
Without knowing the specifics of the Revolution marking system, it can be hard to simply blame one player (and would miss the underlying fact that set pieces succeed or fail because of collective attention to detail).
Whatever the issue, the unacceptable result was that St. Louis midfielder Chris Durkin was as wide open as a player can be in such circumstances, easily applying a finish that Turner found unstoppable at point-blank range.
Peyton Miller’s imminent return to the Starting XI
One of the underrated challenges for the Revolution at the start of 2026 was the calf injury that kept Peyton Miller out of the starting lineup. Entering Matchday 5 on Saturday, Miller was not listed among New England’s injuries for the first time this season.
Probably out of caution given his still-recovering fitness level, Mitrović opted to begin the game with Miller on the bench. Will Sands once again got the start.
Sands, 25, possesses skill and ability in possession. When defending, he is also capable of making quality tackles. Against St. Louis, however, he struggled.
St. Louis repeatedly pushed attacks down New England’s left, often finding enough space to create crosses.
Miller, 18, is himself no Maldini defensively (at least not yet). But the academy graduate is gifted, and proved in 2025 that he is capable of tighter marking. Whenever he is deemed fit enough to start, expect Miller’s name to be added back to the Starting XI.
Leo Campana’s latest injury
An unfortunate moment in the night’s matchup occurred when New England forward Leo Campana — having come on as a second-half sub in the 59th minute — had to exit the game in the 80th minute because of injury. Campana, constantly cognizant of the circumstances in a World Cup year, was visibly upset leaving the field.
The nature of his injury is not yet known, nor its severity, though Mitrović disclosed in his postgame press conference that it’s unrelated to Campana’s most recent injury.
“He was out for two-and-a-half weeks and had a really great week of training with the team,” said Mitrović. “We were very positive, but this is a different injury, so we have to see, once he does an MRI, what is the level of his injury.”
Hayden Bird is a sports staff writer for Boston.com, where he has worked since 2016. He covers all things sports in New England.
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