Revs stay confident in SuperLiga

New England seeks to advance to semifinals with win over KC

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- With a win against Kansas City on Wednesday night, the New England Revolution will qualify for the SuperLiga semifinals. The only problem, according to Revolution coach Steve Nicol, is finding enough players to take the field.

"We're short on numbers," Nicol said.

Nicol said his squad is down to 16 players for the Group B clash against the Wizards. Steve Ralston and Kevin Alston are the latest additions to an already lengthy casualty list. The duo left Sunday's 4-2 win over Santos Laguna with hamstring injuries and won't be available to face K.C. Ralston and Alston join Taylor Twellman (neck), Shalrie Joseph (knee), Chris Albright (knee), Mauricio Castro (hamstring) and Gabriel Badilla (back) on the sidelines.

The injuries to Ralston and Alston create a pair of openings in the Revolution starting lineup. Mike Videira and Amaechi Igwe came on for Ralston and Alston and could have the inside track to slot straight into the lineup. Igwe said he wouldn't approach the upcoming test against the Wizards any differently than a game where he had a lesser chance of playing from the start.

"It's the same way I approach any game," Igwe said. "I want to do the same things that I have been doing. I'll keep with my routine. You never know when you'll get your shot, so you have to take advantage of it. Staying ready and doing all of the little things right will help me."

After Sunday's comeback win against Santos, Igwe said the Revs have a little extra hop on their step.

"It's a confidence builder," Igwe said. "A lot of guys played well. Kheli (Dube) scored a great goal. The guys up top played really well. We just have to keep it tight in the back and try to allow less goals."

New England struggled defensively in its 3-1 loss at CommunityAmerica Ballpark on June 13, thanks in no small part to Emmanuel Osei's first half dismissal. That loss continued the recent difficulties New England has had in dealing with the Wizards; the Revs haven't beaten K.C. in their last three tries and hold just one win in 11 tries (1-6-4) over the Wizards at Gillette Stadium. Nicol said the history was "immaterial" to how this contest would progress.

Getting the ball into the wider areas will likely prove considerably more material to the outcome of the game. The tight quarters at CommunityAmerica Ballpark made it difficult for the Revolution to get the ball wide and stretch out the Kansas City defense, but Revolution midfielder Pat Phelan hopes this contest will unfold differently.

"One of our strengths is getting the ball wide," Phelan said. "We had a lot of success with that against Santos. We tried to do that when we played them in Kansas City on that small field. It's going to be the same (this time)."

With Kenny Mansally and Sainey Nyassi in good form, Nicol thinks his club can do a better job of exploiting the wide areas on the roomier surface.

"We have some weapons in Kenny and Sainey wide," Nicol said. "Hopefully, we can use them."

The conditions could play a role in how effective both teams will be with their attacking movements. Gloomy drizzle has cloaked the Boston area for the better part of a week now, making the artificial surface even quicker than usual. Phelan said that while he hopes the conditions will favor the Revs because they play on the turf regularly, he realizes the conditions could impact both teams.

"It's been like this for more than week, so we're used to it," Phelan said. "I don't remember the last time we've seen the sun. It affects the way both teams need to play. We'll need to play into feet instead of playing into space."

Kyle McCarthy is a contributor to MLSnet.com