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Red Bulls-Revolution Preview

May 28, 2010 - 5:06 PM By PAUL DIGIACOMO STATS Senior Editor

New York (5-4-0) at New England (2-6-2), 8:00 p.m. EDT

New York hasn't beaten New England on the road in nearly eight years. Facing a Revolution squad that is winless since mid-April could help the Red Bulls earn that elusive victory.

New York tries for its first win in New England in 13 matches when the longtime rivals meet Saturday night for the first time this season.

The Red Bulls are 0-9-3 at Gillette Stadium since winning 2-0 on June 29, 2002, when the franchise was known as the MetroStars. They are 0-7-6 in the overall series since a 5-4 win Sept. 17, 2005.

New York (5-4-0) enters this matchup on a three-game skid, but that is nothing compared to New England's struggles.

The Revolution began the season with two wins in three matches before going 0-5-2 since April 17. They've been shut out in three of their last four games, falling 1-0 at Toronto last Saturday.

"One-zero was disappointing," defender Cory Gibbs said. "I think towards the end of the match we had a couple of chances and we could have put away and we deserved at least a point out of it. Just a bit disappointing. I think we just take care of the ball better and we'll do better the next match."

The Revolution are hoping the return of Shalrie Joseph can help. The midfielder, who had career highs of eight goals and eight assists in 2009 while being voted one of three finalists for MLS Most Valuable Player, played well last weekend after missing five games due to personal reasons.

"I thought against Toronto he was unlucky not to score a couple," rookie forward Zack Schilawski told the Revolution's official website. "He's able to get his body in there, he's always challenging the goalkeeper and he's a threat. I think more guys have got to have that attitude."

New England (2-6-2) has done a good job of putting away its chances during the 13-game unbeaten streak against the Red Bulls, outscoring them 20-9.

New York is in second place in the Eastern Conference, but it has struggled to score. The Red Bulls are tied for the fourth-fewest goals in the league with nine, and they've managed to score once during their three-game skid.

That goal came in their last match, a 3-1 home loss to conference-leading Columbus on May 20.

"It's disappointing to be honest with you, we play well the whole game and three mistakes cost us a game where we were probably the better team," forward John Wolyniec told the Red Bulls' official website.