Columbus Crew SC hosts Atlanta United FC on Saturday, July 1 at MAPFRE Stadium. Before the opening whistle blows, here's what you should keep an eye out for:
Last Time
Just two short weeks ago, the Black & Gold traveled south to face Major League Soccer expansion side, Atlanta United FC, at Bobby Dodd Stadium. Despite Federico Higuain’s 26th minute equalizer, and his 46th MLS career goal, Atlanta was able to take control of the second half and netted two unanswered goals. The 3-1 defeat was Crew SC’s third ever loss to a first-year expansion side. However, the Black & Gold fought for a much-needed 4-1 triumph over the Montreal Impact last week and will be coming into Saturday’s match looking for similar results.
The Who’s & How’s
The three players who found the back of the net in their last meeting with Crew SC were Hector Villalba, Miguel Almiron, and Josef Martinez. All three Designated Players have proven to be dangerous assets for their team throughout the season.
Hector Villalba (16’) —Yamil Asad muscled the ball out from under defender Josh Williams and tapped it to Villalba who was waiting on the backside to send the ball low and to the corner from the inside the box.
Miguel Almiron (67’) —Leandro González Pirez made a risky tackle on midfielder Niko Hansen right outside of United’s box then passed the ball quickly into Almiron’s stride who was then able to split the defense and send the ball to the far corner of the net.
Josef Martinez (88’) —Kevin Kratz swooped in and shielded the ball away from defender Waylon Francis before looking up to find Martinez who then rifled the ball from a difficult left-footed angle past goalkeeper Zack Steffen.
Round ✌️
Saturday’s matchup will be the teams’ second and final meeting of the 2017 regular season. The two clubs met once in February during the preseason Carolina Challenge Cup that left the Black & Gold victorious, 2-1, thanks to a Higuain brace.
Crew SC next hosts MLS-expansion side Atlanta United FC on July 1 at MAPFRE Stadium. The match will celebrate Military Appreciation Night while featuring post-match fireworks in honor of the upcoming July 4 holiday.
The Black & Gold welcome German Bundesliga-side and DFB Pokal-finalist Eintracht Frankfurt to MAPFRE Stadium for an international friendly on Monday, July 17. The match is set to kick off at 7:30 p.m.