FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Things had to change for the New England Revolution heading into the MLS Cup Playoffs.
The Revs went six games without a win to close the season and lost their last three games. The passing was off, the defense was leaky and confidence was low.
Many wrote them off ahead of Thursday night's 0-0 draw against the Chicago Fire at Gillette Stadium in the first leg of the Eastern Conference Semifinal Series.
Revolution head coach Steve Nicol asked his troops to stop worrying about the poor results and start remembering how to play the game.
"We finished the season over-thinking when we were playing," Revolution head coach Steve Nicol said. "We decided to get rid of that and just go out and play. Be committed. When you get a chance to pass the ball, pass the ball. When you have to be strong, be strong. We did that tonight."
Much of that strength came from pressing the Fire at every possible opportunity. That meant pushing up the field and trying to take the pressure off the Revolution defense while injecting some life into a sputtering offense.
A slower pace and a multitude of free kicks afforded the Revolution possession in the Chicago end.
"I think more times than not, we had them on the back foot than the other way around," Nicol said.
While the Revs maintained possession, Chicago struggled to get moving through the middle of the park. Cuauhtemoc Blanco didn't see much of the ball and wingers Chris Rolfe and Justin Mapp had to worry about their defensive responsibilities.
"It's the old adage that the best defense is a good attack," midfielder Jeff Larentowicz said. "We were going at them so much that they couldn't sustain the ball and get it to their attacking players."
Chicago improved in the second half as the Revolution's legs started to fade. Brian McBride had a header ruled out for offside in the 76th minute and the Fire started to press a little bit.
"They've got some guile around the box," Nicol said. "I think that's probably the one thing we were missing tonight -- just a wee bit of guile in the final third."
Guile comes with experience and the Revs didn't have much of it in the final third. Nicol started five players who had never featured in a playoff game prior to Thursday evening. That number included two rookies and two second-year players. The playoff pressure didn't take its toll on them, Nicol said.
"They're part of the team," Nicol said. "That's the biggest compliment I can give them. We played as a team tonight. All those guys who have never played in the playoffs played a great performance, gave it all they have, but for a bit of luck and a wee bit more guile, we maybe could have won the game."
Whether New England needed that win remains an open question ahead of next Thursday's second leg at Toyota Park.
"I think (Chicago) definitely came in here trying to get a result," Revs goalkeeper Matt Reis said. "I think they feel confident going back home with the home crowd behind them. But I think we definitely stepped up to the challenge tonight."
Reis said the challenge was to reverse the Revolution's poor form and give themselves a shot heading into the crucial second leg in a week's time.
"We would have liked to have tried to capitalize a little bit offensively and get some goals, but the way we've been playing lately, I think we'll take that 0-0 and build off that," Reis said.
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