It may have taken until the sixth game, but the Columbus Crew SC attack finally showed what it’s capable of Saturday night.
Bolstered by goals from Ethan Finlay, Kei Kamara and Justin Meram, Columbus was able to dispose of New York City FC 3-2. It marks the first victory of the 2016 season for the Black and Gold. It also erases a frustrating five-game winless skid, which was just the second to open a season in team history and first since 2009.
Crew SC Attack Finally Comes Alive in 3-2 Win over NYCFC
Ethan Finlay opened up the scoring in the seventh minute. The Crew SC right winger blasted home a centered ball from the left via Justin Meram. Meram’s movement towards goal forced the NYCFC back line towards his side of the field. That in turn provided a great deal of space for Finlay to tee off from the top of the box, beating NYCFC goalkeeper Josh Saunders.
Eight minutes later, the visitors equalized. And they did so from the head of their highly decorated striker David Villa. The Spanish legend displayed his finishing quality in heading home a well-placed cross from his countryman Andoni Iraola. Villa expertly placed it far post past Crew SC goalkeeper Steve Clark to tie it up.
Finlay nearly had a second in the 28th minute. Making the most of a quick restart and beautiful through ball from Higuain, Finlay flicked it over the sprawling Saunders. The ball would trickle towards the post, glancing off it and denying Crew SC the lead.
The match would go to halftime knotted up at one. But almost immediately after the teams came back onto the pitch for the second half, the home team would go back up. This time, it was Kamara’s turn to reinvigorate his scoring form.
All game long, it appeared that there was quite a bit of space for Crew SC to take advantage of down the flanks. This was particularly true on the right hand side, as NYCFC left back Ronald Matarrita had a tendency to roam too far up the park. Kamara took advantage of this in the 49th minute, taking a diagonal ball from Meram, touching it in front of him, and shooting it low from the top of the box. The shot would beat Saunders far post, giving Crew SC a 2-1 lead.
After assisting on the first two goals, it was only fitting Meram should find the back of the net himself. He would do exactly that in the 80th minute. And once again, Columbus was able to exploit a great deal of space on the right flank. This time, it was Ethan Finlay who played helper, squaring the ball to Meram who would one-time it past Saunders for what seemed to be an unassailable 3-1 lead.
But then NYCFC were gifted an opportunity seven minutes later. After 58th minute substitute Kwadwo Poku got past a challenge from center back Michael Parkhurst, he flared into the box and was taken down by Tyson Wahl. Referee Ted Unkel immediately pointed to the spot. Controversial as the call may have been, what happened next would be even more so.
Unkel would end up sending off Parkhurst, a clear mistake since it was Wahl who was the last defender. Either way, Villa would walk up to the spot and beat Clark to his left to put the Boys in Blue just one behind. They needed just one to escape MAPFRE Stadium with a draw.
And they nearly got it three minutes into stoppage time. Khiry Shelton, subbed into the game along with Poku, sent a cross towards Patrick Mullins who was making a near post run. The NYCFC midfielder, himself an 80th minute sub, slided towards the ball and put it at goal. But Clark was there to preserve the Crew SC win.
Head coach and sporting director Gregg Berhalter emphasized post-game that it was only a matter of time before the floodgates opened up from a goal-scoring standpoint. Statistically, they were due.
“If you look at expected goals versus goals in reality, we were trailing,” Berhalter told Pat Murphy of MassiveReport.com. “And we knew that the movement was good and we should be scoring more than we are. And we have quality players and we’re creating quality chances and it’s a matter of time.”
Meram was highly complementary of Higuaín’s off-the-ball ability after the game in terms of making it possible to find the net.
“There’s so much focus on Higuain,” Meram told Ben Ferree of UWeekly. “The movement he does creates space for me, so I thought he was exceptional tonight.”
Higuain’s movement and ability to create chances for his teammates was evident in the Crew SC win. The Argentinian playmaker was responsible for 25 percent of Columbus’ key passes on the game. And his 2.7 per game is currently fifth in the league.
The wide play on both sides of the field, as well as taking advantage of the more attacking nature of NYCFC’s 4-3-3, were crucial according to Berhalter.
“We knew that if we get the ball through the middle and get the ball wide, we’re going to create advantages,” Berhalter told Last Word on Sports. “They have a very offensive orientated team with their two wingers and their striker. So we wanted to make them work and I think we did a good job of that.”
Ultimately, Saturday’s performance was a long time coming for Crew SC. It was only a matter of time before everything came together. And in front of 16,715 of their home supporters, it was a fitting place for it to do so.
“(We played) some really good soccer,” Berhalter said. “(It was) dynamic, attacking, good possession, good movement. So it was a great performance and certainly (to) get some of these guys off the mark is big.”
With the win, Crew SC remain undefeated all-time against NYCFC. The Black and Gold drew them 2-2 at home on August 19th of last year, then won 2-1 at Yankee Stadium ten days later.
The club’s next contest is one week from Saturday at home against the Houston Dynamo on April 23.
