The New England Revolution fought hard on Sunday afternoon, but they ultimately weren't able to escape the first round of the MLS playoffs. They fell by a score of 1-0 to Atlanta United in the single-elimination round.
Despite the disappointing end result, Revs head coach Bruce Arena commended his team for their effort in the contest, saying that their performance was "outstanding" and implying that they easily could have won the game.
"The effort was outstanding," Arena said to reporters after the game. "I thought it was a good game. You know, we could have been the team walking off the field 1-0. Both teams had chances. They converted one, we did not. I thought, for the most part, we played well.
"All these little plays are the difference in the game. We knew it would be one play. We fully expected to be able to go toe-to-toe with them for 90 minutes. And we did. But we fell short."
Though the Revs may have fallen short in the playoffs, the performance marked a banner start to the Arena tenure in New England. The team was in last place when Arena took over the team midseason. He then led them to a seventh-place finish in the Eastern Conference thanks to a 9-5-10 surge that the team underwent in 24 matches under Arena.
The Revs' playoff appearance was the team's first since 2015. And as long as Arena is around, they should continue to be a team on the rise in the MLS' Eastern Conference.
Highlights from Revs' 1-0 loss to Atlanta United>>>
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