4 takeaways from the Revolution’s 3-1 loss to St. Louis City SC

New England Revolution

New England started well, but couldn’t keep up the momentum.

By Hayden Bird

March 22, 2026 | 9:58 AM

4 minutes to read

The revolution lost to St. Louis City SC 3-1 on the road on Saturday.

A quick start from New England led to a 1-0 lead thanks to right back Eli Feingold, but three unanswered goals from St. Louis ensured the night ended in a third defeat in four games to open the 2026 season.

Here are some takeaways:

One step (mistake) forward, one step back?

After a rather impressive 6-1 win over FC Cincinnati in their home opener last week, the Revolution launched with a similar starting lineup against St. Louis on Saturday. Once again, first-year coach Marko Mitrovic went with a 4-2-3-1 version, with Al Hassan Youssouf and Luca Langoni deployed as asymmetrical outside midfielders (Youssouf drifts inside into a central midfield position at times, and Langoni stays wider as a traditional winger).

It was this system that initially befuddled St. Louis, as the visiting Revolution created a flurry of chances in the first 18 minutes. Perhaps Feingold should have done better with a brilliant chance in the 12th minute when he collected a perfect pass from midfield captain Carles Gil just in front of goal. The young right-back simply missed his shot attempt, and the moment passed.

Feingold found almost immediate redemption less than two minutes later when he put himself on the end of some good New England buildup. Gill’s smart pass put Langone in space near the left end line. The Argentine winger crossed to striker Dur Turjeman (who ran to the near post) and let it pass between his legs back into the middle of the box, where Feingold was waiting to apply a set-piece finish.

For a few minutes after scoring, the Revolution looked like the most likely to score the next goal as well, with New England’s offense continuing to look dangerous in transition.

However, despite all these positives, it was a high point of New England’s night. St. Louis has grown into the game, bringing about changes on the Revolutionary side of the field. This led to the equalizer when New England midfielder Brooklyn Reigns was sent off in the lead-up to Simon Bachir’s immediate equalizer in the 29th minute.

The Revolution were unable to regain the offensive initiative for the rest of the night, although they remained competitive until Marcel Hartel’s stunning insurance goal in the 83rd minute put things out of reach.

Oh Marcel Hartl 🤯

What a hit @stlCITYsc Midfielder! pic.twitter.com/trMKSjoO4J

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 22, 2026

The result is a sign that New England has a long way to go before becoming a consistent winner. St. Louis has not won at home since last August, which perhaps indicates a missed opportunity to get at least one point.

Set the setback piece

A week after scoring several goals from set pieces and capitalizing on six goals in a rout of Cincinnati, New England conceded the go-ahead goal at the end of the first half from a corner kick.

Without knowing the details of the revolution control system, it can be difficult to simply place blame on one player (and you will miss the fundamental fact that set pieces succeed or fail due to the collective attention to detail).

Whatever the issue, the unacceptable result was that St. Louis midfielder Chris Durkin was as wide open as a player can be in such conditions, effortlessly applying a finish that Turner found unstoppable from close range.

Payton Miller’s imminent return to the starting lineup

One challenge for the Revolution at the start of 2026 that was underestimated was the calf injury that kept Peyton Miller out of the starting lineup. Entering Saturday’s fifth round, Miller was not listed among New England’s injuries for the first time this season.

Perhaps out of caution given his still-recovering fitness level, Mitrovic elected to start the match with Miller on the bench. Will Sands started again.

Sands (25 years old) has the skill and ability to possess. When defending, he is also capable of making high-quality tackles. But he struggled against St. Louis.

St. Louis frequently pushed attacks down New England’s left, often finding enough space to create crosses.

Miller, 18, is not a defensive Maldini himself (at least not yet). But the academy graduate is talented, and in 2025 he proved that he is capable of tightening control. When he is deemed fit enough to start, expect Miller’s name to be added back into the starting line-up.

Leo Campana’s latest injury

There was an unfortunate moment in tonight’s game when New England forward Leo Campana – after coming on as a second-half substitute in the 59th minute – had to leave the game in the 80th minute due to injury. Campana was always aware of the circumstances of the World Cup visibly upset Leave the field.

The nature of his injury is not yet known nor how serious it is, although Mitrovic revealed in his post-match press conference that the injury is not related to Campana’s recent injury.

“He was out for two and a half weeks and had a great week of training with the team,” Mitrovic said. He added: “We were very positive, but this is a different injury, so we will have to see, once the MRI is done, what level his injury is.”