Revolution prime Crew as Carles Gil sparks turnaround

Carles Gil scored and had two assists, including on the go-ahead goal by Dor Turgeman, as the New England Revolution rallied for a 3-1 victory over the host Columbus Crew on Sunday.

Matt Polster also scored as the Revolution (11-7-4, 37 points) overcame an eighth-minute goal by Brais Mendez for the struggling Crew (5-12-5, 20 points).

The Crew have lost four straight in MLS and five in a row in all competitions, and they remained last in the Eastern Conference after squandering an opportunity to move to within two points of the playoff line.

New England has two wins and a tie in its past three matches and is fourth in the East, but it didn’t put the match away until Gil’s sly chip shot from 16 yards in the 79th minute for the final score.

The match was postponed from Saturday because the Crew played in a Leagues Cup quarterfinal in Carson, Calif., on Wednesday, a 2-0 loss to Club America.

An extra day of rest seemed to favor the Crew when they jumped out to the early lead, but Polster in the 32nd and Turgeman 10 minutes later turned the match around.

Mendez, the former Real Sociedad striker, scored his second goal in his fifth MLS match. He took an entry ball from Mo Farsi on the right side of the box and beat Matt Turner to the near post with the help of a slight deflection off a Revolution player.

After the Crew bought out designated player Daniel Gazdag on Friday, they entered the match with no active player with more than one goal. Mendez is now the team leader.

Despite the deficit, the Revolution took a deserved halftime lead, outshooting the Crew 13-2 with a 7-1 advantage on target.

Polster leveled off a corner kick by Gil. Mamadou Fofana headed the service to an unmarked Polster in the 6-yard box and he quickly unleashed a shot.

Gil then set up Turgeman for a rising shot to the far post past Patrick Schulte, who made eight saves.

Jack Harrison’s assist was his sixth in five matches since being acquired from Leeds United on July 25.

Turgeman thought he made it 3-1 in the 74th minute but a video review ruled him offside. It didn’t matter because Gil iced the outcome moments later.

–Field Level Media