#NYvCLB: PREVIEW | BERHALTER | JAHN | ASHE
LAST THREE REGULAR-SEASON MEETINGS
07/04/2015 CLB 2 vs. NYRB 1 W: MAPFRE Stadium
10/03/2015 CLB 1 at NYRB 2 L: Red Bull Arena
06/25/2016 CLB 1 vs. NYRB 1 D: MAPFRE Stadium
CREW SC TRAVELS TO NEW YORK TO TAKE ON 1ST-PLACE RED BULLS
On Sunday, October 16, Columbus Crew SC travels to Harrison, New Jersey, to take on New York Red Bulls in the second and final 2016 regular-season match between the two clubs. Columbus is 26-28-10 against the Red Bulls all-time, including a 10-16-5 mark playing New York away from home.
WHERE TO WATCH/LISTEN
Sunday's 3 p.m. ET start is available via regional television on The CW Columbus, Time Warner Cable SportsChannel and BCSN2. Neil Sika (play-by-play) and Dwight Burgess (analyst) are set to have the call of the match. On Time Warner Cable SportsChannel and BCSN2, "Crew SC Matchday," the exclusive pre-match show, starts at 2:30 p.m.ET with Chris Doran, and "Crew SC Post-Match" immediately follows the action only on TWCSC and BCSN2. CW Columbus' broadcast begins at 3:00 p.m. ET. Locally, the contest is available via the radio in English on CD102.5 FM and in Spanish on La Mega 103.1 FM. The English radio broadcast also is set to stream live. Internationally, the contest can be viewed on the following: Abu Dhabi Sports; BeIN Australia; Eurosport
LAST REGULAR-SEASON MEETING
On June 25, the Black & Gold hosted New York Red Bulls at MAPFRE Stadium in front of 20,389 fans. the two sides played to a 1-1 draw following a second-half, stoppage-time equalizer from forward Ola Kamara.
HIGHLIGHTS: #CLBvNY
CLARK, MERAM MAKE 100TH MLS REGULAR-SEASON STARTS
Columbus Crew SC traveled to Chicago to take on the Fire in the third and final meeting between the two sides in 2016. Black & Gold players Justin Meram and Steve Clark both registered their 100th regular-season MLS and Crew SC start. Forward Adam Jahn opened the scoring after slotting home a counter-attack assist from Meram. After two second-half goals for Chicago, Jahn found the back of the net once again after a spinning volley to bring the score level. The match ended in a 2-2 draw at Toyota Park after a brace from Jahn.
MERAM RECORDS 11TH ASSIST, FIRST DOUBLE-DIGIT SEASON
Midfielder Justin Meram recorded his 11th assist on the season in a 2-2 draw with the Fire at Toyota Park on Thursday. With 23 career assists, Meram has more than doubled his next best assist season, five assists in the 2015 season. All 23 of his career assists have been with Columbus Crew SC, the only MLS club the midfielder has played for after being drafted 15th overall by Columbus in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft. Teammate Ethan Finlay is also chasing 10 assists on the season (8) for his second double-digit assist season in his career.
FINLAY NEARING 30-30 STATUS
With 29 career regular-season goals and 28 career regular-season assists, Crew SC midfielder Ethan Finlay is two goals and four assists shy of reaching "30-30" status for his MLS career. Finlay would become just the fifth player in Crew SC history to reach that total for the club. Should he reach the milestone, he would join Brian McBride (62 goals, 45 assists for Columbus), Jeff Cunningham (64 goals, 44 assists), Guillermo Barros Schelotto (33 goals, 41 assists) and Federico Higuain (39 goals, 35 assists) in the 30-30 club.
KAMARA BECOMES 6TH PLAYER TO REGISTER 15-GOAL CAMPAIGN
By recording 15 goals in the 2016 regular season, Crew SC forward Ola Kamara has achieved a feat previously accomplished by just five other players in Black & Gold history.
CREW SC HEADS INTO FINAL PAIR OF MATCHES OF 2016
Following Thursday's match against Chicago Fire, Crew SC was mathematically eliminated from playoff contention with two matches remaining. Sporting Director and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter commented on the remainder of the season in Thursday's post-match press conference: "We’re going to continue to put forth a professional effort and we’ll most likely look at some new faces, give some guys who haven’t had much playing time some game time."
PARKHURST LEADS ALL MLS DEFENDERS IN SUCCESSFUL PASSES
Among all League defenders, Michael Parkhurst has completed the most passes during the 2016 regular season, with 1,395. Teammate Harrison Afful ranks third in the League in the category, with 1,162.
BLACK & GOLD LEAD MLS IN PASSING ACCURACY
According to Opta, Crew SC currently leads all of Major League Soccer in passing accuracy, having recorded an 82.24% completion rate through 32 regular-season matches. Columbus also ranks second in the League in completed passes per match, at 394.41, as well as ranks second in attempted passes per match, at 479.56.
CREW SC LEADS MLS IN POSSESSION, AMONG BEST IN CHANCES CREATED PER MATCH According to the League’s offcial statistician, Opta, Columbus Crew SC leads the League in possession (55.48%) and tied for second in MLS in chances created per match (10.59). Columbus is one of eight clubs in the League averaging over 10 chances created per match.
