MLS Columbus Crew SC

Crew Set to Take On Red Bulls

Published on May 24, 2013 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Columbus Crew SC News Release


OBETZ, Ohio - How good are the Columbus Crew, really? No one knows for sure.

With a .500 record a third of the way through the season and a huge matchup against the New York Red Bulls on Sunday (5 pm ET, UniMas), the club is still looking for a signature win to hang their hat on this season.

All of the team's victories have come at the expense of three of the four bottom clubs in the league in terms of points per game, including two wins over D.C. United and shutout wins over Chivas USA and Toronto FC. Combined, those three teams are 5-20-8.

Nine of the Crew's 13 goals scored and all three clean sheets have come against those teams. They have been outscored 9-4 in the other seven matches.

The most impressive result was a 1-1 tie at Montreal on April 13. But there have also been road losses to Vancouver and Chicago, two teams struggling to keep pace this season.

Beginning Sunday against New York, the Crew play three successive games against teams with winning records, and all three in the Eastern Conference. They host Houston on June 1 and take on Philadelphia at PPL Park on June 5.

"We have to win the games against the teams in our conference," head coach Robert Warzycha said. "It's as simple as that, whether they're on the bottom or the top. But obviously, it would be better against the teams that are higher than us."

Columbus had a chance to make a statement by defeating the Red Bulls on May 4 at Crew Stadium, but lost 1-0 on a Tim Cahill goal in the 80th minute.

It was the type of game-breaking play that the Crew feel they may need to secure points at Red Bull Arena. Look no further than the team's win against TFC, when Federico Higuaín sliced the defense with an entry ball that Dominic Oduro converted for the game-winner.

"I just need that one moment," Oduro said. "Once I get a head start there's no way they're catching me. It's just a matter of me trying to put the ball away."

Black & Gold by the numbers: May 24

4 Chad Barson made his MLS debut on May 18 in Toronto as an 83rd-minute substitute at leftback. Barson becomes the fourth-ever Crew Homegrown Player to make his debut for the club and the first Homegrown Player to make a debut for the club in 2013. Aaron Horton, Matt Lampson and Ben Speas made appearances by the end of 2012 while the Crew's fifth Homegrown Player - Wil Trapp - was in the gameday 18 last weekend.

4-0-1 Following Dominic Oduro's game-winning strike in the 42nd minute last weekend at BMO Field, the Crew is 4-0-1 this season when scoring first. When the Crew doesn't score first, the club has picked up points in just two contests, holding a mark of 0-4-2 in 2013. The Black & Gold are a perfect 3-0-0 in road matches in 2013 when finding the back of the net first.

5/5 Five of the Crew's 13 goals this season have come in the first 45 mintues of action after Dominic Oduro netted a 42nd-minute strike last Saturday at Toronto. The Crew now has five goals and five assists in the first half of play this season. The Black & Gold have recorded eight goals and five assists after halftime in 2013.

0/0 The Crew has not allowed a goal off of an opponent's corner kick this season. Zero also represents the total number of shots that New York Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry recorded when the Crew and New York last met on May 4 at Crew Stadium.

19-12-2 The Crew prepares for third-round action in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Tourna- ment next Wednesday against the Dayton Dutch Lions on May 29 at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Crew is 19-12-2 in its 33 previous tournament contests dating back to 1998. The Crew was crowned 2002 U.S. Open Cup champion as the Black & Gold defeated the Los An- geles Galaxy 1-0 to win the club's first-ever tournament title in front of its home fans at Crew Stadium on October 24, 2002. The Black & Gold also reached the Open Cup Final in the club's first appearance in the tournament in 1998 and most recently in 2010.

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