We all know of the “next man up” mantra within New England football circles. Whenever someone goes down, the next player on the depth chart grabs his helmet, buckles his chin strap, and goes out and gets the job done. It’s something that Bill Belichick and the Patriots have prided themselves on lo these last 19 years, and it has helped lift the team to six Lombardi trophies.
It’s something the fútbol-ing boys across the hall had to do Saturday afternoon, some 25 miles due north of Dallas.
With head athletic trainer Evan Allen helping center back Michael Mancienne off the pitch during pre-match warm-ups, walking gingerly and grasping his lower back, it soon became clear the Englishman would not be able to play in the Revolution’s 24th season opener. After a quick consult, Brad Friedel quickly looked Jalil Anibaba’s way and told the 9-year professional that he was in.
The Davis, Calif. native stepped into the Revs’ starting XI and, in his usual workman-like manner, undoubtedly helped The Boys In Blue deliver an early-season road draw.
The transition from Mancienne to Anibaba was practically seamless Saturday, given that the 6-foot-1 Anibaba made 29 appearances for the Revs last season, many of which saw him paired up along with Antonio Delamea.
“You can’t really replace a player like Mancienne, you can’t replace his leadership, what he does for us, keeping us calm, and also keeping us strong,” Anibaba told Brad Feldman and Paul Mariner on NBC Sports Boston’s Revolution Post Game Live. “I tried to piggyback off some of the performances I had last year. Toni and I are comfortable together, so we did what we did last year.
“As far as having your number being called late, you just have to rely on good habits and your teammates in moments like that.”
Saturday’s appearance wasn’t without its problems, but the key was that it was a rather solitary issue: Anibaba, playing around the midway line, had missed on a 50/50 ball won by former Boston University striker Dominique Badji. The former Commonwealth Avenue Canine found Michael Barrios, who then went one-on-one with Delamea.
Anibaba would hustle his bustle back to try and help the Slovenian fend Barrios off, but he arrived half a moment too late. 1-0 Dallas, and only 13 minutes were gone.
But a consummate pro like Anibaba still had something to say about the final scoreline: he came up with one of his sliding blocks to deny the Burn in the 20th minute, keeping Reggie Cannon’s blast away from Revs goalkeeper Brad Knighton. He had 27 of those last year, and he would, of course, give a shout of authority after he popped to his feet.
? ⚽️ Big block for Jalil Anibaba in the 20th minute!#NERevs pic.twitter.com/IiTCHSlTal
— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) March 2, 2019