Revs Notebook
- Updated: August 13, 2015
Photo credit: Chris Aduama/aduamaphotography.com
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Last week, Revolution midfielder Jermaine Jones had his family fly to Boston to get a taste of what the city had to offer. And with good reason.
With his contract set to expire at the end of this season, Jones spoke on Wednesday about the biggest difference between his adopted home – Los Angeles – and his current city of residence.
“I would say Boston is more of a sports city, and LA’s maybe more high society,” Jones said. “But I like both cities.”
Jones signed a 1.5 year, $4.7 million contract a year ago, the richest deal in club history. Not long after, the Revolution were competing for a championship, due in large part to the contributions of the U.S. International.
But 2015 has been an injury-marred year for the 33-year-old midfielder, and questions about his health haven’t exactly boosted his stock, or negotiating power, for that matter. Even so, Jones is keeping his options open, and having his family in town last week was, at the very least, a sign that he’s open to the idea of a few more years in New England.
“I don’t know what will happen after the season,” Jones said. “So it was important to me to have my family like Boston and they would be okay to move over to Boston, and that’s the good part, I would say that both cities are good cities.”
GETTING THE JUMP ON HOUSTON
During last week’s bye, Revolution coach Jay Heaps said that the focus on training was on self-improvement, both individually and collectively. But the coaching staff also took advantage of a rare opportunity.
While the players were given the weekend off, the coaching staff paid close attention to the Revolution’s next foe – the Houston Dynamo, who grabbed a 2-1 win over the San Jose Earthquakes last weekend.
“We’ve had a little more time from a staff standpoint, meaning we were able to watch that game on Saturday night without having to play a game,” Heaps said. “So there was a little bit different preparation, but it’s about the same.”
Indeed, it’s been business as usual for the players this week, with the first two days of training focused on corrections and refinements. The attention turned to the Dynamo on Wednesday, and the need to maximum points again with another bye week right around the corner.
“We’ll go about it this week and talk about it,” Heaps said. “We’ll really dive into it today in training and tomorrow, and Friday to really focus on Houston.”
GETTING READY FOR THE GAUNTLET
To some, the timing of last week’s bye – the first of the season for the Revolution – was far from ideal. Note: Revolution striker Charlie Davies was not in that camp.
Although an earlier break would’ve been welcomed, Davies was quick to point out that the break actually arrived at an opportune time.
“It lets everybody get mentally prepared for what we like to call ‘the gauntlet,’” Davies said. “Every game is so important, the ultimate goal is to go into the playoffs hot and we obviously have the players, but the mindset has to be right, the mentality has to be right.
“So we have to use these bye weeks to rest and recover, but at the same time, mentally prepare for what’s going to happen down the line.”
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