Player Ratings: New England Revolution v. Houston Dynamo

By Ryan Lanigan
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Updated: July 14, 2013

Revolution midfielder Scott Caldwell turned in another solid performance in Saturday’s 2-1 loss to the Dynamo. (Photo – Kari Heistad)

After each match the contributors to New England Soccer Today will rate the performances of the New England Revolution players who made an appearance on a 1 to 10 scale (1 horrendous, 5 average, 10 perfection). This week Brian O’Connell and Ryan Lanigan contributed ratings for the New England Revolution’s 2-1 loss to the Houston Dynamo.

Bobby Shuttleworth – Average Rating: 5.5 (Brian 5, Ryan 6)
The soccer gods clearly weren’t with the Revolution keeper Saturday night. Couldn’t see Moffat’s first strike through traffic, and second goal bounces off his back before squirting through. Probably could’ve done more on the distribution end, otherwise, an unlucky evening. (Brian) … He came up with a big stop on Giles Barnes in the second half but luck wasn’t on his side tonight with a big screen on Moffat’s first strike and an unlucky bounce on the game winner. (Ryan)

Chris Tierney – Average Rating: 5 (Brian 5, Ryan 5)
Tried to help spark the offense in the first half, but with little success. Like the rest of his teammates, found more opportunities in the second half. Probably should’ve marked Moffatt tighter on second goal. (Brian) … Not his best night passing the ball but still played well, especially defensively. He was one of the defenders who didn’t close out Moffat in time of the second goal. (Ryan)

Stephen McCarthy – Average Rating: 5.75 (Brian 5.5, Ryan 6)
Interestingly, one of the club’s most effective passers on the evening. Played a number of nice balls forward, meted out a little punishment himself, and strong in the air, per usual. (Brian) … His distribution was strong and he even created some chances with some balls forward. With his size, you’d like to see him get up and win a couple more offensive head balls on set pieces. (Ryan)

Jose Goncalves – Average Rating: 5.75 (Brian 5.5, Ryan 6)
Made a number of recoveries to snuff out the Dynamo’s efforts in the first half, and was defensively sound throughout. (Brian) … Was up the physical challenge that Houston brought and again was sound defensively. His passing in the attacking half was even more impressive (90%). (Ryan)

Andrew Farrell – Average Rating: 5.25 (Brian 5.5, Ryan 5)
Good showing in the defending third, but runs going forward were nothing spectacular. Struggled to bolster the attack. (Brian) … He often relies on his speed when defending, so it was surprising to see him beat that way on a couple of occasions. Struggled to get forward but had more of a defensive responsibility. (Ryan)

Saer Sene – Average Rating: 5.5 (Brian 5.5, Ryan 5.5)
Good positioning on feed from Fagundez for the goal. Otherwise, a pretty quiet night, with the lone strike serving as his only shot to speak of. (Brian) … He came a little more alive when Imbongo came on, but that didn’t last. He was in the right place at the right time for his goal, but that’s what strikers do – they score goals. (Ryan)

Lee Nguyen – Average Rating: 5.25 (Brian 5, Ryan 5.5)
Hacked often, and as a result, just couldn’t find much of a rhythm going forward. Chipped in defensively, and launched the obligatory oh-so-close free kick in the waning moments. (Brian) … Covered the field well and almost tied the game up with his free kick in the second half. The Dynamo seemed to target the Revs midfielders with their physical play. (Ryan)

Scott Caldwell – Average Rating: 6.25 (Brian 6, Ryan 6.5)
A strong performance gone to waste; sensational passing accuracy (89.4%) and quick movement was one of the few things that went right for the hosts going forward. (Brian) … He certainly doesn’t look like a rookie with his presence out there. His passing decisions continue to be intelligent which leads to a high completion rate. It’s not outrageous to rope him into Rookie of the Year talk. (Ryan)

Kelyn Rowe – Average Rating: 4.5 (Brian 4.5, Ryan 4.5)
Pretty much invisible for the first half. Showed up in the second half, but with the amount of punishment the Dynamo were doling out, he struggled to create chances. (Brian) … Almost picked up an assist after Diego sent him through but Toja’s run towards goal was too close to the near post. Didn’t seem like he was able to get on track with the physical play, but did well to create a free kick opportunity in the second half just outside the area. (Ryan)

Diego Fagundez – Average Rating: 5.25 (Brian 5, Ryan 5.5)
Made a few nice forays after Moffatt’s first goal, but still prone to making the same mistakes, like cutting inside and running into trouble, when going up against physical teams. (Brian) … Heaps admitted it wasn’t his best game but he still showed glimpses of strong play, with his cross that set up Sene’s goal – which should be credited as an assist – and his through ball to Rowe. (Ryan)

Chad Barrett – Average Rating: 4.25 (Brian 4, Ryan 4.5)
Poor clearance leads to the opening goal, couldn’t quite link up with teammates, and really played a lackluster game. (Brian) … I don’t think he can be blamed for the first goal personally, but overall he seemed frustrated throughout the night. His early sub in the second half represented his sub par performance. Not the Chad Barrett the Revs have seen in the last two weeks. (Ryan)

(sub) Dimitry Imbongo – Average Rating: 3.5 (Brian 3, Ryan 4)
Let his frustrations get the best of him when he threw his forearm into Brunner’s face, and essentially canceled out any chances for an equalizer. The fact that he came off the bench to get the red only made it more egregious. (Brian) … Absolutely inexcusable for him to come in and get a red card, especially with his side down. It’s too bad because he had added energy, had some decent runs, and seemed to spark Sene. (Ryan)

(sub) Juan Toja – Average Rating: 3.88 (Brian 4, Ryan 3.75)
Had a chance to sneak one through late, but once again, it just wasn’t enough from the veteran midfielder. (Brian) … For a positive, he passed well. But he doesn’t bring nearly enough energy when he comes off the bench and that hurt when the team needed a spark being down a man. (Ryan)