Revs seek early goal boost at K.C.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- New England Revolution head coach Steve Nicol wants a few things from Saturday night's game in Kansas City.

But perhaps his first priority is finding a way for his team to get the first goal.

In the Revolution's last three games, the team has scored the first goal zero times. Not coincidentally, the Revs have mustered only two points from those three games.

For a team that hasn't played as well as it would like for quite some time now, getting an early goal would provide a boost, Nicol thinks.

"Getting the first goal is huge," Nicol said. "It settles everybody down. It makes the other team gamble more than they normally would. They both go hand in hand. We want to defend well. If teams are coming at us, we want to be able to stop them."

Times have been tough recently as the Revs have struggled for form since their SuperLiga triumph on Aug. 5. Player injuries, fatigue and mental strain have hindered performances.

"For us, it's definitely been a new challenge with all of the games we've played in the summer," Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis said. "We have finally gotten over the physical aspect of it, but there's definitely the mental aspect of it. Everybody getting back and getting on the same page has been difficult for us."

In order to fulfill Nicol's wishes, the team will have to improve its play through midfield. A team that prides itself on quick passing and wide play has struggled to establish possession in recent games.

"The passing contributes to losing the goals as well," Nicol said.

Reis thinks the team needs to step things up as the regular season winds to a close with Chicago only one point behind in the race for second place.

"In these last three games, we need to give an overall 90-minute performance and keep going," Reis said. "It's good to get one, but it's also good to get two, three and four too."

While a good performance would be nice, the object remains to get points from a city that has yielded seven of them (2-0-1) in the Revs' past three trips.

"We want to go out there and get points," Nicol said. "We want to put a good performance in as much as anything."

Gambian duo Kenny Mansally and Sainey Nyassi will miss the match. The pair will be in Senegal on World Cup qualifying duty. Both players are expected to return in time for Thursday's game against D.C. United. Mauricio Castro is expected to slot into Nyassi's role on the right wing.

The Wizards present a different and difficult challenge as Curt Onalfo's team struggles to score goals (27 goals in 30 games) yet manages to keep touch in the playoff race.

"It's important for us to get into Kansas City and play solidly," Reis said. "They are playing for their season and playing on that small field will be tough."

Much of the emphasis will come from negating set-piece opportunities. Jimmy Conrad is tied for the team lead in goals with five. Conrad's goal haul is a sign that K.C. wants to use one of the smaller surfaces in the league to pump as many balls into the box as possible when given the opportunity.

"If you're giving away corner kicks and wide free kicks, they are going to be put right on top of you," Reis said. "They have a lot of big guys and a lot of guys that attack the ball well."