Doug McIntyre
Soccer Journalist
The Columbus Crew lead Mexican powerhouse Monterrey 2-1 on combination within the Concacaf Champions Cup semifinals after Wednesday’s opening match of the two-leg, total-goals-wins sequence.
Crew striker Cucho Hernandez scored within the first half in Ohio’s capital, just for Los Rayados’ veteran Maximiliano Meza to equalize halfway by the second. However the Crew obtained one other from Canadian nationwide staff striker Jacen Russell-Rowe with 18 minutes of standard time left to play, and so they made the purpose get up as the sport winner.
The decisive rematch between the 2 groups will likely be performed south of the border subsequent week. The sequence winner will face both Membership América or fellow Liga MX facet Pachuca — which tied 1-1 after Tuesday’s opener in Mexico Metropolis — within the June 2 finale on the dwelling of the best remaining seed.
Listed here are just a few fast ideas following Wednesday’s stalemate in Columbus.
Play of the sport
The slick-passing Crew loved the majority of possession all night time, and so they used it to nice benefit on Cucho’s strike. Hernandez began the sequence with a intelligent give-and-go with Russell-Rowe, who managed the ball after which despatched an excellent return move to the Colombian worldwide. Hernandez opened up Monterrey keeper Esteban Andrada with a deft contact to his proper earlier than expertly sliding the end throughout his physique and into the just-vacated reverse nook of the online.
Turning level
Columbus might’ve folded when Meza canceled out their early and well-deserved lead. The guests had all of the momentum after a lightning fast counterattacked ended with an unmarked Meza knocking the tying purpose dwelling previous Crew keeper Patrick Schulte on the again put up:
As an alternative, the hosts’ resolve appeared to deepen, even when the payoff did not come straight away. The go-ahead purpose from Russell-Rowe arrived about quarter-hour later.
Key stat
The numbers do not lie: the Crew was the higher staff by nearly each accessible metric, together with pictures, on-goal pictures, passes, passing accuracy and possession. However the one-goal benefit is the one factor that issues heading into subsequent week’s return leg, even when they did quit a doubtlessly tie-breaking away purpose.
Columbus survived Tigres within the final spherical regardless of not successful the primary leg, turning into the one MLS staff ever to win a shootout in Mexico alongside the way in which. Now any tie aside from a scoreless one can be sufficient for them transfer on. Crew coach Wilfried Nancy & Co. will gladly take that deal.
What’s subsequent for Columbus?
Nancy will welcome his former membership, CF Montreal, to Decrease.com discipline in MLS motion on Saturday. Columbus, which trails Japanese Convention chief Inter Miami by 4 factors, is three factors away from the Canadian membership after 9 league matches performed in 2024.
What’s subsequent for Monterrey?
Los Rayados, who sit fourth within the Liga MX Clausura standings, journey to Necaxa on Sunday for a league match in opposition to Liga MX’s eighth place staff — which trials Monterrey by only a single level after 16 rounds of play.
Do not anticipate that to cease coach Fernando Ortiz from resting most of his most popular beginning 11 to verify they’re prepared for the all-important Champions Cup rematch subsequent Wednesday at Estadio BBVA. Final weekend, Ortiz sat 5 regulars for an eventual 2-0 defeat at Membership León.
Doug McIntyre is a soccer author for FOX Sports activities. Earlier than becoming a member of FOX Sports activities in 2021, he was a workers author with ESPN and Yahoo Sports activities and he has lined United States males’s and ladies’s nationwide groups at a number of FIFA World Cups. Observe him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.
Get extra from CONCACAF Champions Cup Observe your favorites to get details about video games, information and extra
