Marko Mitrovic believes his New England Revolution side are set to experience one of the "highest challenges" of their season against New York City FC this weekend.
New England are flying high in the Eastern Conference, with their midweek win over D.C. United keeping them in fourth and three points clear of the chasing pack.
A hat-trick from Alhassan Yusuf was enough to seal all three points at Audi Field, helping them respond from back-to-back defeats to the Houston Dynamo and Toronto FC.
But their next step comes in the shape of NYCFC, who are seventh and have the chance to move within three points of their opponents should they emerge victorious.
And Mitrovic acknowledged the difficulty his team will face against an NYCFC side that he believes have got better and better in the years he has been in the United States.
"New York City have had a certain game model ever since I came into the league back in 2016," Mitrovic said. "They are a team that is very possession-orientated.
"They always have a high level of talent at the top end of the field. They are a well-coached team and want to control the game, but on the other hand, they have a good defence.
"For me, it's a very strong and solid team. This team played in the final of the Eastern Conference last season, and I would say they are one of the highest challenges that we can face in this league for sure."
East coast rivalry#NEvNYC @Ticketmaster pic.twitter.com/I2ieH6Oyog
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) August 21, 2026
But the Pigeons have endured a difficult run of late, losing consecutive league games with their latest defeat coming in heartbreaking fashion against FC Cincinnati.
Luighi had cancelled out Kenji Mboma Dem's opener, but Evander popped up in the 92nd minute to snatch all three points for Pat Noonan's side at TQL Stadium on Wednesday.
NYCFC have now conceded five goals in second-half stoppage time this season, though Pascal Jansen said it was something not to be overly concerned by.
"Nothing in particular," Jansen said when asked why his team has struggled late in matches recently. "This game was completely different to the one we played in New York.
"We should have rewarded ourselves in the second half. We didn't do that, and you know that there is only one moment they need to get themselves back into the game or even go on and get the advantage in this case.
"The goal was conceded very late, and at that moment, I think we were a bit naive going up front to press and not mature enough in the final third defensively."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
New England Revolution – Alhassan Yusuf
Yusuf notched a hat-trick against D.C. after having scored four career goals in 60 MLS appearances prior to New England's midweek win.
It was the 11th hat-trick in the Revolution's history (first since Kei Kamara in September 2017) and the first hat-trick ever scored by a Nigerian player in MLS.
New York City FC – Luighi
Luighi has scored in each of his first two MLS appearances for NYCFC, the second player in club history to do so with the team after Thiago Andrade in June 2021.
No player that debuted in MLS in 2026 has scored in his first three matches in the league, but Luighi will be out to rip up the record books here.
MATCH PREDICTION: New England REVOLUTION WIN
New England snapped a six-match winless run against NYCFC in all competitions with a 2-0 home victory in the last meeting between the sides last April. The Revolution's last set of back-to-back wins over the Pigeons was between June and August 2021.
The Revolution's 3-0 victory over D.C. was their fourth win by three or more goals in 2026. They had two such wins in MLS play in 2024 and 2025 combined and only had more in a single regular season once – five in 2017.
NYCFC, meanwhile, saw their losing streak extended to four matches in all competitions with a loss at Cincinnati, their longest losing run since between April and May 2023.
The only longer losing run in club history was a five-match streak was between March and July 2020, including the Concacaf Champions League and MLS is Back.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
New England Revolution – 41.8%
Draw – 24.3%
New York City FC – 33.9%
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