FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Carles Gil wrote himself further into New England Revolution history on Saturday night, converting a late penalty for his 50th career goal on the occasion of his 200th MLS appearance to lift the Revs to a 2-1 comeback win over the Columbus Crew at the Gillette Stadium.
Gil became only the second player in Revolution history to record both 50 goals and 50 assists in the regular season, a landmark that underscores the Spanish captain’s enduring impact since arriving in New England in 2019.
The milestone came on a night when the Revs needed every bit of his composure, trailing for more than half the match before rallying in the second period to extend their winning streak to four consecutive matches across all competitions.
The match started under difficult circumstances for the home side.
Defender Brayan Ceballos went down with an apparent injury just 17 minutes into the contest, forcing head coach Marko Mitrović to send on Peyton Miller as an early substitute. The defensive reshuffle unsettled New England’s shape, and Columbus took advantage.
In the 25th minute, Crew midfielder Max Arfsten capitalized on a well-placed delivery from Uruguayan forward Diego Rossi to put the visitors ahead, 1-0. It was a deserved goal for a Columbus side that started the brighter of the two teams.
The Crew pressed high and used their set-piece threat to keep New England pinned back for stretches of the opening half, finishing the match with seven corner kicks to the Revs’ three.
Goalkeeper Matt Turner proved pivotal in keeping the deficit to one before halftime. The U.S. international turned in a commanding performance between the posts, finishing with three saves on the night. Turner’s shot-stopping ensured New England entered the break still within striking distance despite Columbus controlling large portions of the first 45 minutes.
The second half was an entirely different match. New England came out of the tunnel with urgency and controlled the tempo from the opening whistle of the second period. The equalizer arrived in the 55th minute when Israeli forward Dor Turgeman latched onto a chance created by Argentine winger Luca Langoni and buried his finish to level the score at 1-1. Turgeman, who has now found the scoresheet in five of his first six games played at Gillette Stadium, earned an 8.1 match rating from data provider FotMob for his night’s work.
New England continued to push forward and generated the better chances as the half wore on. Columbus, already without leading scorer Wessam Abou Ali for the remainder of the season due to a torn ACL, struggled to hold its defensive line under sustained pressure.
The decisive moment came in the 85th minute when the referee pointed to the penalty spot. Gil, the 33-year-old captain, stepped up and calmly slotted the ball home to make it 2-1 and send the Gillette Stadium crowd into celebration. It was a fitting way to reach the half-century mark — under pressure, in a decisive moment, on a milestone night. Gil finished with the highest match rating of any player on the pitch at 8.5.
The final minutes grew heated. Columbus collected three yellow cards across the second half, with André Gomes cautioned in the 71st minute, Arfsten booked in the 87th, and center back Rudy Camacho picking up a card deep in stoppage time as the Crew threw numbers forward in search of an equalizer. Turner and the Revs’ back line held firm through 10 minutes of added time.
The match statistics reflected the balanced nature of the contest. Both sides registered 10 shots apiece. Possession was split nearly evenly, with Columbus holding a marginal 52-48 edge. But the difference came in finishing and goalkeeping: Turner’s three saves dwarfed the single stop managed by Columbus goalkeeper Patrick Schulte on the other end, a disparity that told the story of the second half. New England’s expected goals figure of 1.23 also outpaced Columbus’s 0.95, confirming the Revs were the more dangerous side when it mattered.
The result pushes New England to 4-3-0 on the season with 12 points, lifting the club to fifth in the Eastern Conference. Columbus sinks to 1-4-3, sitting 12th in the East with six points through eight matches under first-year manager Henrik Rydström.
For New England, the win marks a fourth straight victory across all competitions following the 3-0 shutout of CF Montréal on April 4, the 1-0 triumph over D.C. United on April 11, and the U.S. Open Cup penalty shootout win over Rhode Island FC at midweek. The Revs’ home record this season now stands at a perfect 4-0-0, with the club outscoring opponents by a combined margin of 12-2 in Foxborough.
New England faces a quick turnaround, traveling to Atlanta United on Wednesday for a 7:45 p.m. ET kickoff before heading to Inter Miami on April 25. Timothy Ford refereed Saturday’s match.
