January 29, 20205 yr I've seen quite a few people who are displeased with the Adi signing and I suppose I understand. Between the reckless DUI and the unproductive recent seasons, I get it. I'm alright with giving a guy a second chance to get things right. If he abuses that faith being placed in him by the team, then so be it, we can bounce him outta here easily. Only paying 205k of a nearly 2 million dollar salary is a huge bargain for us though. You wouldnt get a remotely capable second choice striker for any less than that, and we know hes capable of double digit numbers at his best. If he even bags 5 or 6 goals for us, it will have been worth it (especially if any are against Cincy!)
January 29, 20205 yr https://www.dispatch.com/sports/20200129/michael-arace--columbus-crew-considers-changing-name-colors-as-part-of-rebranding The name and color scheme are iconic, at least to me. It would be pretty tough to get used to a name/appearance change if its going to be drastic. If it's not broke, why fix it?
January 29, 20205 yr 33 minutes ago, CMHOhio said: https://www.dispatch.com/sports/20200129/michael-arace--columbus-crew-considers-changing-name-colors-as-part-of-rebranding The name and color scheme are iconic, at least to me. It would be pretty tough to get used to a name/appearance change if its going to be drastic. If it's not broke, why fix it? Yeah, this news kinda came out of nowhere. It wasn't written by the normal Crew beat reporter, but one of the Dispatch's general sports columnists. So I hope he's mistaken.
January 29, 20205 yr 1 hour ago, CMHOhio said: https://www.dispatch.com/sports/20200129/michael-arace--columbus-crew-considers-changing-name-colors-as-part-of-rebranding The name and color scheme are iconic, at least to me. It would be pretty tough to get used to a name/appearance change if its going to be drastic. If it's not broke, why fix it? I agree with this reply in this reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/Columbus/comments/evmnv8/columbus_crew_considers_changing_name_colors_as/ Quote doppleganger2621 - 52 points - 3 hours ago Such a dumb idea. I'm not even that vested in the Crew (like the team, enjoy going to a game here and there, but complete opposite of a diehard), but like, why? The Crew colors have been like this for almost 25 years, it's pretty established that these are the colors of this team and I haven't heard literally anyone suggest they need a rebrand. Why rile up the fan base that has shown it will take action against ownership? Like you're creating headaches when none are really there. You've saved the franchise, you're building a new stadium in a desirable location, you're basically heroes to the fanbase, why risk messing that up? Because now you just have to deal with #SaveTheColors or something like that. However, with all that being said, there may be less to this then the article suggests. Here's a tweet this morning from 97.1's J. D. Smith (who I would call an Crew insider):
January 29, 20205 yr 19 minutes ago, Columbo said: I agree with this reply in this reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/Columbus/comments/evmnv8/columbus_crew_considers_changing_name_colors_as/ However, with all that being said, there may be less to this then the article suggests. Here's a tweet this morning from 97.1's J. D. Smith (who I would call an Crew insider): Indeed, it now looks like a lot of damage control is being done to quell the outrage, as seen in this more tempered article from Business First: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2020/01/29/crew-rebranding-effort-will-not-include-a-change.html Pretty poor show by the Dispatch, not that they're much of a newspaper/news source anymore.
January 29, 20205 yr Ownership confirmation. If the colors get tweaked in the future, I bet it'll be like what the Browns did 5 years back.
February 1, 20205 yr https://www.dispatch.com/sports/20200131/columbus-crew-trades-wil-trapp-to-inter-miami https://www.massivereport.com/2020/1/31/21117079/columbus-crew-wil-trapp-trade-inter-miami-mls-2020-caleb-porter Today is one of those days where the heart and head of being a fan conflict with each other. When Darlington Nagbe was acquired, it left three starting-quality midfielders on the roster (Nagbe, Artur & Trapp) for two available midfield roster spots. Speculation wondered if all three would stay on the 2020 roster or if Artur or Trapp would be dealt away. Now we know the answer. My head tells me this is likely a good move for the Crew. Nagbe basically takes over Trapp's role in the starting lineup. And though Trapp could likely fill a more defensive midfielder spot, the more physical Artur is probably better suited for that role. Plus Artur is younger and cheaper than Trapp. And Trapp is entering the final year of his current contract. And Trapp has expressed a desire to play in Europe. So all those facts led to trading Trapp to Miami for allocation money and an 2020 international roster spot - more things that can help to construct the 2020 roster that Bez and Porter are putting together. But my heart aches over Trapp being dealt away. Trapp is an all-Ohio player. Born and raised in the Columbus suburb of Gahanna. Playing youth soccer in the Crew Academy. Playing college soccer at the University of Akron. Then playing seven MLS seasons for the Columbus Crew - the last three seasons as the team captain. When you combine all that with his support of the SaveTheCrew movement during the dark days of the 2018 season - using the term "heart and soul" to describe Trapp is no cliche when it comes to his importance to Crew fans. The Nordecke twitter feed sums it up:
February 18, 20205 yr Trapp will be missed on an emotional level, that's for sure. But it's time for the move. It's been coming for a while. Hes been interested in a Europe move now for years. The one offer we know about was back in 2018, from English Championship side Blackburn Rovers for 1.25 mil. That's what he was worth to them, back when he was performing at a higher level. I suspect his value steadily declined soon after that in conjunction with his form and even if there was teams still interested in his services, a transfer fee of 1.25 or lower was never going to be worth losing the Crews long time, homegrown, national teamer, captain and face of the franchise. By the time this offseason rolled around, I was expecting us to just release him for free due to his committed tenure with the team (and subsequently retain his rights if he ever comes back to the league). I never thought the Crew staff or Trapp himself would be okay with going to another MLS team, much less another Eastern conference one... But here we are. Hes with Miami, and since it's a new team with no bad blood with us or anything and no real history to them...it doesnt feel too bad to me. It's a good move for all parties involved. Columbus can move forward with their tactics, and release an expensive player who didnt fit the plans of the new coach. Miami obtains a player with lots of league experience for the center of their team, who's a proven leader, with plenty of good years ahead of him as they build out a roster. And Wil gets a fresh start to rejuvenate himself, a new opportunity to prove himself as a solid, and hopefully elite MLS midfielder, try to fight his way back into the USMNT (wasnt gonna happen with the Crew), and maybe even eventually secure a move overseas still.
February 26, 20205 yr What the Crew's planned $30M, OhioHealth-sponsored training facility means for the team's future Renderings were released Tuesday as part of the naming-rights announcement for the training facility, which will be called the OhioHealth Performance Center. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2020/02/26/what-the-crews-planned-30m-ohiohealth-sponsored.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
February 27, 20205 yr Columbus Crew SC partners with Nationwide for future jersey sponsorship In 2020, the Crew will partner with Nationwide Children’s Hospital and feature a special Nationwide Children’s jersey for all competitions, including all Major League Soccer and Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup matches. The Nationwide Children’s Hospital jersey will debut at Crew SC’s Opening Match this Sunday, March 1 when the Black & Gold host New York City FC. For one year, all authentic and replica jerseys, including those worn by the First Team and those sold at retail, will prominently incorporate the Nationwide Children’s Hospital logo. Beginning in 2021, Crew SC kits will feature the Nationwide logo and Nationwide Children’s Hospital will transition into a community partner role with details to be announced later this year. https://www.columbuscrewsc.com/post/2020/02/27/jersey-columbus-crew-sc-partners-nationwide-future-jersey-sponsorship 2020 jerseys with the NCH logo: 2021 black jersey with the Nationwide logo: There will be a new yellow jersey design for 2021.
February 28, 20205 yr Things are really coming together. This is just awesome news. And it destroys the previous Trust Fund Tony narrative that the Columbus corporate community would never support the Crew. No Tony, they were repelled by you and what an awful owner you were(!!) https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020/02/27/columbus-crew-sc-announce-new-jersey-sponsor-partnership-nationwide
February 28, 20205 yr 6 minutes ago, Columbo said: And it destroys the previous Trust Fund Tony narrative that the Columbus corporate community would never support the Crew. No Tony, they were repelled by you and what an awful owner you were(!!) Exactly. Apparently this deal is worth $3.5-4mil per year (The Dispatch has undervalued it) and is for at least 6 years, but can be up to ten years. That’s an absolutely massive deal, especially for a team that only gets one nationally televised regular season game each year.
March 1, 20205 yr Crewsmas Day is here!!! Things have really come together off the field with the new stadium under construction, plans and sponsorship announced for the new practice facility, and a great new jersey sponsor that blows away anything Trust Fund Tony ever accomplished. But things are also coming together on the field. The 2019 season had three phases. An early promising phase with a holdover roster from the successful 2018 team. Then a bunch of injuries and call-ups that saw a 1-13-1 stretch to sink any playoff hopes. Then a roster shakeup that saw a promising finish to the season. That roster shakeup continued in the off-season. 35-year-old Federico Higuain reached the end of the line with another season-ending injury and was not resigned by the Crew. He was replaced with another Argentine playmaker in 27-year-old Lucas Zelarayan for a record transfer signing fee. Captain Wil Trapp was traded to Miami - a deal made possible by the earlier acquisition of Darlington Nagbe. Lalas Abubakar and his mountain of hair was traded to the Mountain State of Colorado - a deal made possible by the acquisition of Vito Wormgoor, an experienced Dutch center back who will slot next to Jonathan Mensah on the back line. Another acquisition not reflected on the projected starting lineup below was getting Fanendo Adi from Cincinnati (and getting FCC to pay most of his salary this season). Adi is a classic low-risk, high-reward signing - and addresses one of last season's weak spots - a quality backup/sub for Zadres. Some other key subs include Mokhtar at the forward wing (acquired last summer) and Cadden at the defensive wing (acquired last season but played in England until this season). Additionally, just getting back some key injured players from last season - like the back winger tandem of Valenzuela and Afful - will be a boost. The roster is quite strong in the starting 11 - and pretty decent in its reserve strength. The only glaring question mark is the midfield depth behind Nagbe and Artur - they're entering the season with only a pair of 18-year-olds, Aidan Morris and Sebastian Berhalter (son of former head coach Gregg Berhalter). Below are a couple of season previews for the 2020 Crew. For myself, I see getting back to the MLS playoffs as the floor for this year's expectations. As for the ceiling - the sky's the limit! https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020/02/17/2020-season-preview-columbus-crew-sc https://www.americansocceranalysis.com/home/2020/2/19/2020-season-preview-columbus-crew-sc
March 1, 20205 yr CREWSMAS -- aka Game 1: https://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2020-03-01-columbus-crew-sc-vs-new-york-city-fc/recap https://www.massivereport.com/2020/3/1/21160199/lucas-zelarayans-brilliance-earns-columbus-crew-season-opening-win-mls-2020 Going into this 2020 season opener, GM Bez built a lineup that better reflected Coach Porter's counter-attacking style over Berhalter's possess-and-pass style. And with a talented and aggressive NYCFC team opposing them, that looked like the game we would get today. However, after the third minute, both teams strategy went out the window. The Crew's counter-attacking style caught the NYCFC back line napping when the Crew's newest $7-million man Lucas Zelarayan received a pass after he got past the final NYCFC defender. The NYCFC defender then clipped Zelarayan's foot in trying to get back into position and was issued a straight red card. So, the Crew got a one-man advantage for nearly the entire match - but also needed to change into a possess-and-pass team because NYCFC would have to back off and bunker down. So instead of the fast-break Porter style, the Crew played 3G ball and tried to break down the NYCFC defensive shell. They piled up the possession and shots advantage while getting a few decent scoring chances for the rest of the first half. But with no breakthrough, it was a 0-0 halftime. The Crew finally broke through at the 56th minute of the second half on a bit of individual brilliance from Zelarayan. Nagbe switched the field to open up the defense with a pass to Afful. Then Afful found Zelarayan in some open space just outside the 6-yard box. As the defense closed in, Zelarayan moved the ball onto his left foot and curved a beautiful shot into the upper far corner of the goal that the NYCFC keeper could only admire to give the Crew a 1-0 lead. The Crew had a chance to double the lead in the 74th minute when Zelarayan found Diaz wide right on a counter. Diaz had no defenders between him and the keeper, but badly miss-hit his shot. So instead of an easy win with an insurmountable two-goal lead, Crew fans had to sweat out the final few minutes. However - unlike last season - they didn't give this win away and saw out a 1-0 opening game win.
March 9, 20205 yr GAME 2 -- aka The Coronavirus Cup: https://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2020-03-07-seattle-sounders-fc-vs-columbus-crew-sc/recap https://www.massivereport.com/2020/3/8/21169713/columbus-crew-draw-seattle-sounders-on-the-road-1-1-mls-2020 With the coronavirus hitting Seattle harder than any other U.S. city, there was some concern that Saturday night's game might be postponed or played before an empty stadium. Neither scenario happened and the game went on as scheduled. The Crew struck first in the 33rd minute when Diaz hit a beautiful diagonal pass into the far side of the 6-yd box. Zardes was waiting to neatly redirect it past the Seattle keeper and give the Crew a 1-0 lead. It looked like Seattle had tied it in the 53rd minute of the second half - but VAR ruled the scoring player offside and the Crew maintained the one-goal lead. However, in the 79th minute, Seattle did get an equalizer after an odd series of events. Seattle lofted a harmless looking ball left of the 18-yd box. While Crew second-half sub Etienne tried to slow-play the ball out-of-bounds, a Seattle player raced past him and hit a crossing pass into the box just before the ball was going out. That pass hit Afful's extended arm in the box - earning Seattle a penalty kick. The PK shot was saved by Room. But then VAR intervened to help Seattle this time, as Room was ruled to have left his line early, and Seattle was awarded a second PK shot. This PK was converted and the game was tied 1-1. Both teams had some half-decent scoring chances in the final minutes - until Zelarayan had a free-kick opportunity on the game's final play in the 96th minute. Zelarayan's 28-yard shot was stopped by a full-extension diving save to end the game 1-1. A decent road point for the Crew. And a very decent first two games with a home win and road draw against two of the strongest teams in MLS. One bit of bad news: Late in the first half, left back Milton Valenzuela appeared to injure his right knee that caused him to miss the entire 2019 season with an ACL tear. Valenzuela was replaced with Cadden at halftime. After the game, Porter said the halftime sub was for precautionary reasons. In today's Dispatch, they said the team wouldn't have an update until tomorrow's practice.
March 11, 20205 yr On 3/9/2020 at 12:39 PM, Columbo said: One bit of bad news: Late in the first half, left back Milton Valenzuela appeared to injure his right knee that caused him to miss the entire 2019 season with an ACL tear. Valenzuela was replaced with Cadden at halftime. After the game, Porter said the halftime sub was for precautionary reasons. In today's Dispatch, they said the team wouldn't have an update until tomorrow's practice. Update on the Milton Valenzuela knee injury. Valenzuela was diagnosed with a torn meniscus. Porter said he would be out “a couple of weeks” - so he'll miss at least this weekend's game against RSL and the following weekend's game at Nashville. Chris Cadden replaced Valenzuela in the Seattle game - although he's more natural at right back than left back. Waylon Francis is the more natural replacement at left back - but he's been out with his own knee injury suffered during the preseason. However, Francis returned to full training late last week and could be an option this weekend. If Francis is not ready to go this Saturday, Hector Jimenez could step into the starting lineup: https://www.massivereport.com/2020/3/10/21174055/columbus-crew-milton-valenzuela-suffered-torn-meniscus-expected-to-miss-two-weeks
March 11, 20205 yr Although Governor DeWine's recommendation to limit spectators at indoor sporting events did not apply to the Crew's outdoor venue, the team issued a statement that Saturday’s home match against Real Salt Lake at Mapfre Stadium will “remain scheduled to be played as planned.” However, it would be held with extra safety protocols (as noted in the below article): https://www.massivereport.com/2020/3/10/21173304/columbus-crew-announce-match-real-salt-lake-will-go-as-planned-covid-19-concerns
March 17, 20205 yr On 3/11/2020 at 1:25 PM, Columbo said: Although Governor DeWine's recommendation to limit spectators at indoor sporting events did not apply to the Crew's outdoor venue, the team issued a statement that Saturday’s home match against Real Salt Lake at Mapfre Stadium will “remain scheduled to be played as planned.” However, it would be held with extra safety protocols (as noted in the below article): https://www.massivereport.com/2020/3/10/21173304/columbus-crew-announce-match-real-salt-lake-will-go-as-planned-covid-19-concerns This game was not played because MLS (and the entire sporting world) shut down until further notice due to coronavirus concerns.
March 17, 20205 yr Because the sporting world (and the Crew) have shut down until further notice, I need some cheering up. Fortunately, Morgan Hughes delivers with his newest Non-Robot Crew SC Video - Corona Virus Edition. BTW, it is gloriously NSFW - if anyone out there is still W'ing:
April 23, 20205 yr The MLS season is still shut down due to the coronavirus. But the Mapfre Stadium groundskeepers are still keeping the field in amazing condition. From https://www.reddit.com/r/Columbus/comments/g6722p/field_design_at_crew_stadium/
April 23, 20205 yr 6 minutes ago, jmblec2 said: updates on the new stadium? would love to see some pictures. Here's the construction cam: https://www.crewstadium.com/#construction-cam
June 11, 20205 yr Update from the MLS thread about the 2020 season restart: 23 hours ago, Columbo said: https://www.espn.com/soccer/major-league-soccer/story/4108957/mls-is-back-tournament-to-kick-off-on-july-8-in-orlando Major League Soccer unveiled its plans for returning to play in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, with the league set to resume on July 8 with what it is calling the MLS is Back Tournament. All 26 MLS teams will participate in the competition, which will be held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at the Walt Disney World Resort, just outside Orlando, Florida. MLS IS BACK TOURNAMENT: KEY DATES June 24: Teams begin arriving in Florida July 8: Group stage begins July 25-28: Round-of-16 July 30- Aug. 1: Quarterfinals Aug. 5-6: Semifinals Aug. 11: MLS is Back Tournament Final All told, 54 games will be played over four weeks. ... All of the group stage matches will count in the regular-season standings. Once the MLS is Back Tournament is over, MLS plans to continue its regular season with a revised schedule in home markets, followed by the MLS Cup playoffs and the 25th MLS Cup. The dates are still to be determined for the playoffs and MLS Cup, while the final number of matches and the schedule for the remainder of the 2020 MLS regular season will be announced in the coming weeks. And an update from the team:
June 11, 20205 yr MLS held the draw for the group stage this afternoon: https://www.massivereport.com/2020/6/11/21286515/columbus-crew-fc-cincinnati-atlanta-united-new-york-bulls-in-mls-is-back-tournament Group A: Orlando City, Inter Miami, New York City FC, Philadelphia Union, Chicago Fire, Nashville SC Group B: Seattle Sounders, FC Dallas, Vancouver Whitecaps, San Jose Earthquakes Group C: Toronto FC, New England Revolution, Montreal Impact, D.C. United Group D: Real Salt Lake, Sporting Kansas City, Colorado Rapids, Minnesota United Group E: Atlanta United, FC Cincinnati, New York Red Bulls, Columbus Crew Group F: Los Angeles Football Club C, LA Galaxy, Houston Dynamo, Portland Timbers The top two teams from each group plus the top four third-place teams will advance into the Round of 16.
June 25, 20204 yr The Crew's MLS is Back Tournament schedule: Saturday, July 11 --- FC Cincinnati vs. Columbus Crew, 10:30 p.m. ET - FS1/TUDN Thursday, July 16 -- Columbus Crew vs. New York Red Bulls, 10:30 p.m. ET - FS1/TUDN Tuesday, July 21 --- Atlanta United vs. Columbus Crew, 8 p.m. ET - TUDN (TUDN was formerly Univision Deportes)
June 30, 20204 yr The Crew arrived in Orlando last night for the 'MLS is Back' tournament that will restart the 2020 season. It was also reported that upon arrival in Orlando, all Crew players and staff tested negative for COVID-19: https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020/06/24/mls-teams-begin-arriving-orlando-mls-back-tournament https://www.reddit.com/r/TheMassive/comments/hiabht/jacob_meyers_upon_arrival_in_orlando_all_crew96/ Before heading to the airport, the team was sent off in style by their supporters outside Mapfre Stadium: https://www.massivereport.com/2020/6/28/21306196/watch-columbus-crew-fans-send-off-team-to-mls-is-back-tournament https://www.massivereport.com/2020/6/28/21306234/gallery-crew-team-sendoff
July 2, 20204 yr On 6/30/2020 at 1:52 PM, Columbo said: The Crew arrived in Orlando last night for the 'MLS is Back' tournament that will restart the 2020 season. It was also reported that upon arrival in Orlando, all Crew players and staff tested negative for COVID-19: https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020/06/24/mls-teams-begin-arriving-orlando-mls-back-tournament https://www.reddit.com/r/TheMassive/comments/hiabht/jacob_meyers_upon_arrival_in_orlando_all_crew96/ The Crew have had a player test positive for COVID-19 since arriving in Orlando: https://www.espn.com/soccer/columbus-crew-sc/story/4126882/columbus-crew-player-tests-positive-for-the-coronavirus https://www.massivereport.com/2020/7/2/21311468/one-columbus-crew-player-has-initial-positive-test-for-covid-19-mls-is-back
July 3, 20204 yr Damn you Mickey!!! "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
July 11, 20204 yr The MLS is Back Tournament got underway in Orlando this week -- minus two teams (Dallas & Nashville) that had too many players test positive for COVID-19. And since Columbus had a player test positive after arriving in Orlando, there was some concern that the Crew might be sidelined as well. However, it looks like the Crew coronavirus contagion was limited to that one unnamed player and tonight's match with Cincinnati is still on. Below is an article updating this situation: Caleb Porter says Crew has no other positive tests; player in isolation is asymptomatic The Crew has had no players, coaches or staff test positive for coronavirus since an unnamed player tested positive for the virus seven days ago, and that player in isolation does not have any symptoms, said coach Caleb Porter. All members of the club have gone through five rounds of testing since the one player tested positive. All of those tests, minus the player in isolation, came back negative. Porter said the team spent 48 hours in their hotel rooms to prevent further spread of the virus and took the next couple days before resuming eating meals together and doing outdoor workouts. Porter said the club believes the player was infected with the virus before traveling to Orlando, but there’s no way to definitively tell. He said he hopes to have the player back in training in the next three to four days. Before a player returns after testing positive for COVID-19, MLS protocol requires the individual to test negative twice within 24 hours and have no symptoms. MORE: https://www.thisweeknews.com/sports/20200708/caleb-porter-says-crew-has-no-other-positive-tests-player-in-isolation-is-asymptomatic
July 11, 20204 yr Some other good news going into tonight's game against Cincinnati. The Crew will have two new sponsors on their kits during their MLS is Back tournament games: https://www.massivereport.com/2020/7/10/21320536/columbus-crew-announce-jersey-and-shorts-sponsor-for-mls-is-back-tournament MLS is allowing teams to add sponsors during this nationally televised tournament to make up for lost revenue due to missing four months of regular season games. So the Crew announced yesterday that the team will have a Scotts Miracle-Gro patch on their jersey’s sleeves and an OhioHealth patch on their shorts for the MLS is Back Tournament. These two new sponsors will join Nationwide Children’s Hospital, which was announced as the club’s primary jersey sponsor for the 2020 season.
July 13, 20204 yr GAME 3 of the 2020 regular season / GAME 1 of Group Play in the MLS is Back tournament: https://www.massivereport.com/2020/7/12/21321527/columbus-crew-roll-in-big-win-against-fc-cincinnati-mls-is-back https://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2020-07-11-fc-cincinnati-vs-columbus-crew-sc/recap MLS is back and now so is the Crew. After lightning delayed the start of the last night's 8PM opener between follow Group E teams Atlanta and NYRB, the Crew's Hell is Real Florida edition game with FC Cincinnati didn't get started until 11:20PM. On the FS1 broadcast, the announcers wondered if this was the latest ever start for an MLS game (it probably was). The Crew starting lineup and bench was without three key players. Pedro Santos and Milton Valenzuela were not in the starting 11 - while backup striker Fanendo Adi was not in the gameday 18. Early on the loss of Valenzuela at left back hurt the Crew. FCC's speedy right winger Kekuta Manneh raced past Valenzuela's replacement Hector Jimenez to create some scoring chances - the best in the 8th minute on a wide angle shot that was parried away by Eloy Room to keep FCC off the scoreboard. The Crew's injury situation got worse in the 12th minute when veteran central defender Vito Wormgoor injured his right leg and had to leave the game. It appears to me that he injured his knee, but the Massive Report mentioned an ankle injury. In any event, Wormgoor didn't put any weight on his right leg and needed to be assisted off the field. Talented but young 20-year-old Aboubacar Keita replaced him on the Crew backline. The game was pretty evenly played until the 27th minute, when highly-paid DP acquisition Lucas Zelarayan uncorked a dazzling free-kick goal to give the Crew a 1-0 lead. Zelarayan's shot from 22-yards out curved around the FCC defensive wall and just inside the near post for as beautiful a shot as you'll ever see. The Crew followed up three minutes later with a Zardes goal that took advantage of some very poor marking from FCC backline. The Crew moved the ball quickly through midfield from Nagbe to Mokhtar, who slid a pass to the wide open Zardes at the edge of the 18-yard box, who did not miss his chance. After the Crew were up 2-0 in the 30th minute, the rest of the game seemed like a formality. Early after halftime in the 49th minute, Zelarayan drove a beautiful long crossing pass that Zardes neatly one-timed with his left foot to put the Crew up 3-0. Then in the 60th minute, Zelarayan found Jimenez at the left edge of FCC's 18-yard box, who then found Mokhtar open inside the box, who blasted it past the FCC keeper to put the Crew up 4-0. The final 30 minutes was simply playing out the string and emptying the Crew bench with two subs in the 61st minute and two more subs in 77th minute - which included the MLS debuts of 18-year-old midfielders Aidan Morris and Sebastian Berhalter. And if that Berhalter name sounds familiar, it's because he is the son of former Crew head coach (and current USMNT head coach) Gregg Berhalter. Who was actually in attendance for this game to see his son's debut. All in all -- a game worth staying up late for (if you were a Crew fan) ?
July 13, 20204 yr The health of the Crew's central defenders bears watching. There wasn't any post-game update about Wormgoor, other than Porter saying he was being checked out and expected him to be out for their next game. The other veteran central defender Jonathan Mensah took a knock to his leg in the 86th minute and stayed down for an extended time before getting up and finishing the game. As for the injuries of players not in the Gameday 18 -- Santos, Valenzuela, Adi and Francis. Porter described them as soft tissue injuries and not something major. So they possibly could be returning sooner rather than later. And as for the mystery Crew player who tested positive for COVID-19. That player remains a mystery. But Coach Porter did say that the player who tested positive has since tested negative. So that's great to hear. The next game is Thursday 10:30 p.m. ET against the New York Red Bulls, who won their opening game against Atlanta 1-0.
July 14, 20204 yr The Crew website is currently re-airing the late Saturday Hell is Real match. But whether you watch it or not - enjoy that dazzling Zelarayan goal that opened the scoring: And also enjoy the fan reactions from the game at https://www.massivereport.com/2020/7/12/21321568/fan-reactions-columbus-crew-vs-fc-cincinnati-mls-is-back-hell-is-real-lucas-zelarayan-gyasi-zardes But this was the most heartwarming tweet. SaveTheCrew leader Morgan Hughes and his wife had their first child while the MLS season was suspended:
July 14, 20204 yr Crew center back Vito Wormgoor is back in Columbus for further evaluation of his injured ankle. Because of that he will miss the remainder of the MLS is Back Tournament in Orlando. It’s unknown how much time he will miss if there is a regular season beyond the MLS is Back Tournament. In today's press conference, Coach Porter also said that the four players who were injured and unavailable for the first game would probably not be available for Thursday’s match against the Red Bulls.
July 18, 20204 yr GAME 4 of the 2020 regular season / GAME 2 of Group Play in the MLS is Back tournament: https://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2020-07-16-columbus-crew-sc-vs-new-york-red-bulls/recap https://www.massivereport.com/2020/7/17/21328029/columbus-crew-show-dominance-downing-new-york-red-bulls-2-0 On the injury news, center back Woomgoor is out for the season, but the Crew did see three players unavailable for their previous match (Santos, Valenzuela, Adi) return to either the starting lineup or the gameday bench. With the quick turnaround, Coach Porter went with a roster rotation and replaced five starters from Saturday's game against Cincinnati. Williams replaced Keita (nee Woomgoor) at center back, Cadden replaced Afful at right back, Berhalter replaced Artir at midfield, Etienne replaced Mokhtar at left back, and Santos replaced Diaz at right back. By contrast, the Red Bulls went with the same starting 11 that won 1-0 against ATL. The return of Santos into the starting lineup was very welcome. However, the addition of 18-year-old Sebastian Berhalter in a key midfield role against the high-pressing Red Bulls was cause for concern. And NYRB did bring an aggressive high-press to begin the game, looking like they were inches away from forcing a turnover deep in Crew territory. However, the backline of Mensah and Williams, GK Room and particularly midfielder Darlington Nagbe were able to keep the ball moving juuuusssttt out of reach of the NYRB pressure for the first 20 minutes. The Crew broke the NYRB press on, of all things, a throw-in from midfield. Cadden's quick throw-in found Santos with room to move forward - which he did quickly before sliding a slick pass to a wide-open Zardes, who found himself one-on-one with the NYRB keeper in the 18-yard-box, which Zardes neatly finished into the net to give the Crew a 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute. The Crew nearly got a quick second goal in the 30th minute off a header from a NYRB goal-kick at midfield that broke Zardes loose behind the NYRB backline. As the keeper closed out Zardes, Gyasi slid a pass left to an unmarked Etienne, who had a wide-open chance that he shanked wide left(!) But Etienne got a chance to redeem that very early in the second half. In the 47th minute, Etienne drove the ball quickly down the left side past the final defender. As the NYRB defense recovered to stop his run, Etienne found an unmarked Zelarayan in a central position at the edge of the 18-yard-box, who blasted it past the NYRB keeper to give the Crew a 2-0 lead. Zardes nearly had another golden opportunity in the 74th minute, but a desperate sliding tackle preventing a shot. And Mokhtar as a sub nearly had a highlight level chip goal in the 76th minute, but it bounced off the crossbar. The only real tension for the Crew in the second half was in stoppage time, when GK Eloy Room went down with a leg cramp, and with the Crew out of subs, had to hobble around for 10 minutes, hoping that NYRB didn't force him to make an athletic save. But the Red Bulls didn't (in fact they had zero shots-on-target for the night) and the Crew defense kept a clean sheet. Another impressive tournament game for the Crew. Even though it wasn't the 4-0 score against FCC, this 2-0 final against NYRB was just as dominant. The ZZ goal scorers (Zardes and Zelarayan) kept scoring. Santos injected some more creativity to the offense. Young Berhalter's first MLS start went very well. But the under-the-radar MVP's are Mensah and Nagbe on the defensive side. Mensah has been just dominant in the central defense. While Nagbe nimbly moves the ball out of danger from crowded places in Crew territory. With this win, the Crew have clinched advancement into the knockout round, and have virtually clinched first-place in their group. Columbus faces Atlanta in the final game of group play on Thursday, July 21 at 8 p.m.
July 22, 20204 yr GAME 5 of the 2020 regular season / GAME 3 of Group Play in the MLS is Back tournament: https://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2020-07-21-atlanta-united-fc-vs-columbus-crew-sc/lineup https://www.massivereport.com/2020/7/21/21333574/columbus-crew-remains-perfect-blank-atlanta-united-to-seal-group-e-youness-mokhtar-mls-is-back The Crew had already clinched advancement to the Round of 16. Atlanta needed a win to have to prevent elimination from the tournament. Because this wasn't a must-win game, the Crew did another roster rotation and replaced Zelarayan and Room in the starting lineup. Zelarayan was rested but available on the bench, while Room was out because an injury from the previous game. Backup keeper Andrew Tarbell, acquired during the off-season, got the start in net. Santos replaced Zelarayan at the CAM position. Despite the absence of those two key players, the Crew starting 11 still looked good. The offensive side had Zardes up top, with Mokhtar and Diaz on the wings (which was the starting duo in game 1). The game 1 starting duo of Nagbe and Artur were back in midfield. Afful was back at right back, while Mensah and Keita - the center back duo for most of game 1 - were reunited. Most encouraging though was the return of Valenzuela at left back after missing games 1 & 2. Valenzuela was key in the Crew's first half in the 18th minute. Mokhtar's give-and-go with Valenzuela was perfectly executed by Valenzuela and perfectly finished by Mokhtar to give Columbus a 1-0 lead. Unfortunately, Mokhtar had to leave the game just before halftime after landing awkwardly and injuring his right leg. Etienne replaced him at left wing. Valenzuela was subbed out at halftime for Jimenez - which was likely planned since Valenzuela was returning after a long layoff. Adi subbed in for Zardes and Zelarayan replaced Santos in the 60th minute, and Berhalter replaced Nagbe in the 80th minute in the Crew's continued roster rotation before the knock-out games. Losing Room for the back-up Tarbell seemed like a big concern. However, Tarbell played very well - netting six saves - and seems like a quality fill-in. Despite ATL's desperate need to win this game, they didn't really put much pressure on the Crew defense. Although they did generate six shots-on-target, the saves Tarbell needed to make were generally of the comfortable variety. And so ATL bowed out meekly with three straight 1-0 losses for zero points and zero goals(!) While the Crew won all three group games 4-0, 2-0 and 1-0. Or as someone on twitter recapped it:
July 22, 20204 yr Before going on to some injury news and looking forward to the upcoming Round of 16 game for the team - let's marvel at the one Crew goal in the Atlanta game. The Mokthar/Valenzuela give-and-go goal finish came at the end of a 19-pass possession for the Crew that took the ball all over the field. Enjoy the video replay below:
July 22, 20204 yr Okay. Now that we're feeling good about the Crew -- here's the injury news from the three group games. First, starting center back Wormgoor got injured in the first game and won't be back. Then, late in the second game, starting goalkeeper Room was hobbled with a leg injury. Now starting left wing Mokhtar goes down with a leg injury in the third game. Here's some updates on Room and Mokhtar from Coach Porter: So, sounds like it wasn't just a leg cramp for Room. Could be a problem going forward. But if Tarbell plays like he did last night, maybe not. As for Mokhtar: This could also be a problem going forward because although the Crew have some depth at this position, none are as good as the way Mokhtar has been playing lately. Etienne is the natural backup. Cadden and Jimenez could also fill in, although they're more suited to the left back position rather than a forward left wing position. Hopefully Mokhtar's injury isn't as severe as Woomgoor's. At first Mokhtar's injury looked just as bad because he couldn't put any weight on his leg and needed to be assisted to the sideline. But at the end of the game, Mokhtar could be seen walking on his leg - although gingerly. So probably not the season-ender that Woomgoor had - but we might find out by the next game.
July 24, 20204 yr While the Crew were on the field in the MLS in Back tournament, team management was filling out the front office: A couple things are interesting about this announcement. First, that both hires are from the Toronto front office that GM Bez used to run. And second, that one of the new hires would be the GM of a Crew 2 team in 2021. In the Dispatch reporter's tweet feed, one of his replies to this tweet included a 1/31/20 article he wrote about the Crew forming a Crew 2 team for 2021: https://www.thisweeknews.com/sports/20200131/columbus-crew-aiming-to-field-reserve-team-in-2021 I totally missed this at the time. But this is something very positive for the Crew. Most MLS teams either have a team-operated USL reserve team or have a direct USL affiliate. But this was something that the previous absentee Precourt ownership allowed to languish. Currently the Crew is one of only five MLS teams without a formal reserve team or affiliate arrangement. And this is something important, because a reserve or USL affiliate team can give valuable professional playing time to young prospects within a team's academy system. Without an affiliate, the Crew have had to loan players to USL teams - which doesn't give them direct control over how or when their prospects play. But it sounds like that will change in 2021 with the formation of a Crew 2 team. The details are still unknown, but its likely that a Crew 2 team would play home games in Mapfre/New Downtown Stadium next year. The Crew 2 team would also likely play in either the second-level USL Championship division or third-level USL League One division.
July 29, 20204 yr ROUND OF 16 GAME -- MLS IS BACK TOURNAMENT https://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2020-07-28-columbus-crew-sc-vs-minnesota-united-fc/recap https://www.massivereport.com/2020/7/28/21345972/columbus-crew-fall-to-minnesota-in-penalties-eliminated-from-mls-is-back-gyasi-zardes-ethan-finlay The drama and curse of a knock-out round is that if a team has a flat game, they could get eliminated. That is what happened last night to the Crew. Despite some key injuries to the starting goalkeeper, starting central defender and starting left wing, the Crew fielded a strong starting 11 with the return of Valenzuela at left back and Santos at left wing. And Andrew Tarbell had a good previous performance in goal replace Room. But this game had something that we didn't see in the previous three group game victories -- an early goal for the opponent. Minnesota scored in the 18th minute off a corner kick that then got headed around the edge of the 6-yd box, until a Minnesota player's one-time kick from the air was so strong that it looked like it nearly took Tarbell's head off before hitting in back of the net. With Minnesota up 1-0, they backed off and packed in the defense. The Crew dominated possession and shots, but couldn't generate any prime scoring opportunities. Even before the Minnesota goal, the Crew didn't seem to have their sharpness from group play. Even Nagbe, who was nearly flawless in group play, made some passing errors and was subbed out in the 75th minute for a switch to a more offensive formation with the game still 1-0. But as flat and sluggish as the Crew looked, they got bailed out in the 78th minute when a Minnesota defender committed an obvious but silly foul on second-half sub Etienne inside the 18-yd box, and the Crew were awarded a penalty kick. The PK was taken by Zardes, and the Crew got lucky again, when Zardes' initial shot was saved by the Minnesota keeper, but the ball deflected back to Zardes for an easy tap-in to equalize the game 1-1. Neither team was able to break the 1-1 tie in regulation. So, for this tournament, that meant the match went immediately to a PK shootout. In the shootout, Minnesota was a perfect 5 of 5 -- while the Crew got one shot saved by the Minnesota keeper. And that allowed Minnesota to advance, while Columbus was eliminated.
August 8, 20204 yr On 7/24/2020 at 2:30 PM, Columbo said: While the Crew were on the field in the MLS in Back tournament, team management was filling out the front office: A couple things are interesting about this announcement. First, that both hires are from the Toronto front office that GM Bez used to run. And second, that one of the new hires would be the GM of a Crew 2 team in 2021. In the Dispatch reporter's tweet feed, one of his replies to this tweet included a 1/31/20 article he wrote about the Crew forming a Crew 2 team for 2021: https://www.thisweeknews.com/sports/20200131/columbus-crew-aiming-to-field-reserve-team-in-2021 I totally missed this at the time. But this is something very positive for the Crew. Most MLS teams either have a team-operated USL reserve team or have a direct USL affiliate. But this was something that the previous absentee Precourt ownership allowed to languish. Currently the Crew is one of only five MLS teams without a formal reserve team or affiliate arrangement. And this is something important, because a reserve or USL affiliate team can give valuable professional playing time to young prospects within a team's academy system. Without an affiliate, the Crew have had to loan players to USL teams - which doesn't give them direct control over how or when their prospects play. But it sounds like that will change in 2021 with the formation of a Crew 2 team. The details are still unknown, but its likely that a Crew 2 team would play home games in Mapfre/New Downtown Stadium next year. The Crew 2 team would also likely play in either the second-level USL Championship division or third-level USL League One division. An update about the Crew 2 reserve team: https://www.dispatch.com/sports/20200801/first-season-of-columbus-crew-reserve-team-crew-2-could-be-postponed Quote The plans of fielding a Crew reserve team in the United Soccer League might be pushed back a year, with the inaugural season possibly in 2022. Crew president and general manager Tim Bezbatchenko told The Dispatch this month that there’s no definitive date on when the reserve team, Crew 2, will be formed and take the field for the first time. But 2021 is no longer a sure thing due to the coronavirus pandemic. “I think we’re evaluating,” Bezbatchenko said. “I think like all business, the pandemic has forced us to relook at our structure and our programming. But our vision hasn’t changed in terms of we need to bridge the gap between our academy and the first team.”
August 8, 20204 yr MLS released its first phase of the regular-season restart following the MLS is Back Tournament with the Crew having six matches between Aug. 20 and Sept. 12. The Crew’s press release stated that having fans in attendance for matches is still a possibility. That decision, which has to be approved by the Ohio Department of Health and Columbus Public Health, will be announced at a later date. Each team will play 18 games to finish out the regular season, culminating in Decision Day on Nov. 8. Playoffs will also be expanded in the shortened season. Instead a 14-team playoff, 18 teams will now receive playoff berths with MLS Cup scheduled for Dec. 12.
August 16, 20204 yr https://www.dispatch.com/sports/20200814/columbus-crew-acquires-veteran-midfielder-emmanuel-boateng-in-one-of-two-trades The Crew made a couple of trades before this week's MLS regular season restart: The first trade sent backup central defender Axel Sjoberg to DC United for backup winger Emmanel Boateng. Sjoberg was acquired via the waiver wire during the off-season and didn't see any playing time with the Crew during 2020 - thus depriving us of seeing someone 6'-7" play soccer. 26-year-old Boateng is a speedy winger with 111 regular-season appearances (65 starts) over a five-year MLS career. Which makes you wonder if the Mokhtar injury is severe enough to require a replacement player like Boateng or if GM Bez is just gaining some additional offensive depth. The second trade acquired 24-year-old defender Grant Lillard from Miami for a third-round pick in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft. Lillard had 12 regular-season appearances (eight starts) with Chicago over the past two seasons. It seems like this trade basically replenishes the defensive depth lost in the Sjoberg trade.
August 20, 20204 yr On 8/16/2020 at 3:51 PM, Columbo said: ...you wonder if the Mokhtar injury is severe enough to require a replacement player like Boateng or if GM Bez is just gaining some additional offensive depth. The answer might be yes to both questions. In the below linked analysis of the Boateng trade (and the related Lillard trade) the author wrote "(Mokhtar) should miss only a couple more weeks". So if true, Boateng could be a short-term replacement and a longer-term depth/insurance policy against further injuries: https://www.massivereport.com/2020/8/16/21369487/what-can-columbus-crew-expect-from-grant-lillard-emmanuel-boateng-mls-2020
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