Davies Compares Upcoming Knockout Clash to Cup Final
- Updated: October 26, 2015
Photo credit: Kari Heistad/capturedimages.biz
Don’t expect the Revolution to get too carried away with their emphatic win in Sunday’s regular season finale at New York City.
Following the 3-1 victory – one in which the locals scored all three goals before the hour mark – Revolution forward Charlie Davies mentioned that his team will have to quickly reset its focus on Wednesday’s knockout match at DC.
“We know that, now, the season doesn’t mean anything,” Davies told the media after the match. “It’s the playoffs, and in one game, you could be out, so it’s our cup final going into DC, and we’re looking forward to it.”
Wednesday’s match will be the first time that the Revolution, which finished the season in fifth place, will play a knockout match since the single-game wildcard was introduced in 2011. During the last two seasons, the club avoided the wild-card round entirely thanks to third-place and second-place finishes in 2013 and 2014, respectively.
But Davies isn’t concerned about having to partake in an extra playoff game this year. After returning 10 of the 11 starters from last year’s MLS Cup final, there’s plenty of belief in the locker room that they can take care of business on Wednesday.
“We’re a very experienced squad,” Davies said. “We’ve been through a lot this year, as well as last year, and we can use that experience to our advantage.”
Although the locals are already looking ahead, you can bet that one thing they hope to hold onto from Sunday’s match is the precision they played with against City.
“(Sunday) felt like last year’s playoff run where things are clicking,” Davies said. “Guys know where to be, the passes are being anticipated, and things felt really fluid tonight. So we’ll just have to look to improve and keep getting better.”
Getting better is the name of the game for all 10 teams who qualified for playoff spots, no doubt. But to Davies, the fact that he and his teammates are about to enter the postseason for the third year in a row may give them the advantage come Wednesday.
“We know what it takes to win,” Davies said. “So we have to go out there and do it.”
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