Head Coach Caleb Porteradmitted it wasn't a perfect display of soccer in a playoff-like scenario on Sunday at MAPFRE Stadium, but all-in-all, the Club's collective effort shined through and, ultimately, that was the takeaway.
"It wasn’t perfect, but it was definitely a playoff-type game," Porter said post-match.
Given the adverse weather conditions, mistakes were made, Porter explained, who went on to say rough patches were to be expected considering that, for the most part, Sunday's starting lineup hadn't played together in nearly two months.
"[There were] some mistakes both ways, but that’s to be expected certainly from our end getting back into a rhythm with that [starting] 11 being together for the first time, they needed quite some time," Porter said.
Darlington Nagbeand Lucas Zelarayan featured together in the XI for the first time since Sept. 2, coincidentally being the Club's last match vs. Philadelphia.
But as far as the scorecard is concerned, it wasn't the Crew's touted offseason acquisitions that made the difference.
Artur, who now has two goals in the last four games, and recent acquisition Krisztian Nemeth each scored to help lift Columbus to 38 total points, or a 1.81 points per game average, with two regular-season matches remaining.
GOAL | Nemeth scores first Crew goal, game-winner
"It was a team win and it took everyone to win the game," Porter said, who later spotlighted a few individuals, including Eloy Room following his eight-save performance.
Prior to Sunday's match, the Crew stood just ahead of Orlando City SC for third place in the Eastern Conference. The Black & Gold still remain in third place, as the Crew looks to secure at least a top-four seed to maintain home-field advantage in the first playoff match, at minimum.
So, heading into the weekend with seeding implications at play and a formidable opponent presented, Sunday's win displayed a glimpse of what Crew fans largely became accustomed to prior to a series of injury- and schedule-caused lineup rotations throughout the past two months.
"We’ve had to do different things to try and get results, and change plans, and it’s been a bit of a mixed bag. But I think tonight, we wanted to get back to playing like the Columbus Crew and the way that we prefer to play," Porter said.
GOAL | Artur drills it from deep vs. Philadelphia
Statistically, Philadelphia outshot Columbus 22-7, including 9-3 in shots on target, and edged the duels-won percentage, 53 to 47.
Still, it was Columbus who struck first on Sunday; it was Columbus who never trailed; and it was Columbus who improved to an 8-1-0 home record to offset a recent downturn, having played five of the previous seven games on the road while garnering just one win.
"I don’t think inside the locker room - certainly amongst our staff or people inside the Club - that our belief in the group ever wavered," Porter said with confidence, laying emphasis on understanding the bigger picture.
"But we knew the perspective on it. We knew obviously that at this stage in the season – getting healthy – that we would re-establish who we are as a team, and I think we showed that tonight."
