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| MLS Preview: New England Revolution vs. Washington DC United |
Nicol, coach of New England since 2002, described his team's performance in a 3-0 loss to the Philadelphia Union - especially the first half - as one of the worst he's seen during his long tenure. "It was like watching a bunch of schoolboys," he said. Nicol made it clear that his players need to show more "heart" Wednesday, when New England (3-9-7) opens a three-game road trip at D.C. United (5-5-8) "We need to see what's inside them. It's about heart. Having ability and all those other things is fantastic, but if you don't have the heart for a fight, and you don't know how to fight for yourself, and your teammates - so that's what we'll see on Wednesday," Nicol said. "It's time to step forward and show what you're made of." Nicol has been searching for new talent to end the club's free fall, which has lasted over two months, but he's been frustrated by deals falling through at the last moment. New England made two offers over the weekend to sign unnamed players, but even though Nicol believed one of the players was set to join, the move fell apart. "That's happened two or three occasions already [this] season," Nicol said. Although New England was lucky enough to land U.S. midfielder Benny Feilhaber earlier this year, the Revolution have dropped four of their last five matches in Major League Soccer when he has started. Feilhaber's frustrations boiled over Sunday, and two yellow cards for useless fouls earned him a red card, ejection and automatic one-game suspension. Despite the loss of Feilhaber, Nicol will be glad to have captain and eight- time all-star Shalrie Jospeh back in midfield against United. Joseph served a one-game suspension against Philadelphia for accumulated yellow cards. New England lacked any direction without Joseph, who might be the only player who is not fighting for his job at RFK Stadium on Wednesday. "I think everybody needs to realize that they're playing for their jobs," said Revolution goalie Matt Reis. "I think everyone is out here thinking everything is great and everything is fun but in the end if we keep sucking like this, then guys are going to be out of jobs." Nicol challenged his players before Sunday's match, saying it was time to grow "a pair." But what followed, in Nicol's mind, was an inability to even perform the basics well. New England failed to take a shot in the first half and ended without a shot on goal for just the third time in its history. "We just individually as much as anything else aren't doing the basics well," Nicol said. "And it's a domino effect after that." Nicol has decided to put 16-year-old Diego Fagundez on the 18-player match day roster for the first time against United. The talented midfielder could easily find a bigger role with the Revolution in the coming weeks. New England last won against the expansion Vancouver Whitecaps FC on May 14, and Reis acknowledged "not winning since May has been awful." The Revolution are winless on the road this season, going 0-6-3 to equal a club record. Not only would New England set a new road winless mark without a win, it could also fall to the bottom of the overall table. Vancouver, which visits the San Jose Earthquakes on Wednesday, is just two points back with the lowest total. Nicol - who took New England to four MLS Cup finals - has searched for answers all year, using 17 different lineups in 19 games, but at least the Revolution can lean on its recent run of solid form against United this week. Joseph had a goal and an assist in a 2-1 win at Gillette Stadium earlier this season, as the Revolution extended their MLS unbeaten streak against D.C. to five games - four wins and a draw. New England also won 3-2 in U.S. Open Cup play earlier this season. "[New England] got us earlier this season. We're looking to get some revenge," United midfielder Clyde Simms said. However, United is on a five-game unbeaten run and striker Charlie Davies has half as many goals (eight) as the Revolution do as a team (16). And Fred, who has spent part of four seasons with D.C., will play his last home game. Fred agreed to a transfer to Australian A-League side Melbourne Heart last month, and will try to add to his 11 career goals for United before departing. But in addition to Joseph, Ryan Cochrane is available after serving a one-game ban against Philadelphia. And United has won just two of its nine home matches this season, so the Revolution might not have a better shot to snap their road woes - and spark a turnaround ahead of the trip to Colorado. "At this point, we got to take some pride in trying to at least fight and do the little things right," New England defender Chris Tierney said. "We just got to get it together. We need points, this is the point of the season where it's do or die," New England defender Kevin Alston said, "so we just got to find a way." BetPhoenix has the latest odds on this event and all of your soccer betting needs. The Revolution is vulnerable right now and DC United will be able to take advantage of that with a big win. Play on: DC United 
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MLS Soccer gets underway with a full card on Wednesday night and one of the main features is the match between New England Revolution vs. Washington DC United, New England coach Steve Nicol admitted on Sunday night after the Revolution's winless skid reached nine matches that "we need some new faces."
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