Before leaving the field, Columbus Crew head coach Caleb Porter walked toward the Nordecke, like he’s done countless times before, and gave a thumbs up to the supporters.
It was in front of those same supporters where Luiz Díaz celebrated the opening goal and Gyasi Zardes ran after scoring the game-winner.
On Saturday afternoon, the Crew delivered a performance expected of reigning MLS Cup champions, as they beat Toronto FC, 2-1, at Historic Crew Stadium in this season’s second Trillium Cup meeting.
“I thought you saw, in the first half, we really came out with a lot of intensity,” Porter said. “I thought we were aggressive. It’s our best half of the year by far. We looked like the Columbus Crew.”
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The blue-clad Crew took the lead in the 12th minute when the home side punished the visitors with a full-field counterattack that only lasted 10 seconds.
Defending a corner, Pedro Santos stood atop the 18-yard box and quickly played a through ball toward the halfway line. From there, it was a footrace between Díaz and two Toronto defenders toward goal.
The Costa Rican winger collected the ball at midfield and only needed four total touches before he slotting the ball into the net first his first goal this season.
“A lot was going through my mind,” he said. “I thought a lot about the effort that I have been putting in at training, I thought a lot about my family, everything I have been doing since I’ve been here. I want to dedicate the goal to my family, to my grandmother and my grandfather who are always there for me.”
The Crew doubled its lead in the 21st minute when Santos, who started at left-back in his 100th regular-season appearance, played a pinpoint cross from the left flank into the box.
Zardes was on the receiving end and poked the ball past Toronto goalkeeper Alex Bono for his first goal in 2021 and 50th Crew goal across all competitions.
“Since I’ve joined the Club, everybody has been so friendly,” Zardes said. “It’s like my second family. They’ve been inviting and welcoming from day one. I can’t score goals without my teammates. So, they’re the ones who provided the service and the crosses and you know, I’m just getting on the end of it. I’m thrilled to just have scored the 50th goal in three years, and now I’ve just got to keep going and try to reach the 100 goal club with this Club.”
Toronto eventually cut the Crew lead to 2-1 in the 52nd minute, but Columbus hung on for its second home win this season and second in as many games.
The reigning champs have now won three of their last five games and sit fifth in the Eastern Conference standings through seven matches.
The Crew, who endured a six-game, 19-day stretch earlier this month, will now have a three-week break before hosting Chicago Fire FC on June 19. That match will be the last at Historic Crew Stadium before the Club moves to New Crew Stadium on July 3 against the New England Revolution.
“It’s two wins in a row,” Porter said. “Obviously, the last one was a big one. I never doubt this group. They have a great mentality; we have a bunch of winners in that locker room. We’ve had a ton of injuries. If you look back through the lineups, you’re going to see a lot of different lineups and a lot of different players – there was very little continuity. I said it two weeks ago: give us a little time, give us a little continuity, give us a little training and you’ll see. I think (what] you’re seeing in the last two games (is) that we have a good group.”
