FINAL: Columbus Crew SC 1-2 Philadelphia Union
90' Two penalty shouts and the ref waves no.
The fourth official on the side has indicated a minimum of three minutes of stoppage time.
90' Duka and Fabinho collide heads and are down. Ref halts play.
86' Higuain tries to find Ashe making a run, but the ball goes out for a goal kick.
81' SUBSTITUTION: Charlie Davies replaces Chris Pontius.
78' YELLOW CARD CAUTION to Alejandro Bedoya.
74' GOAL! Keegan Rosenberry responds with a goal of his own to give the Union the lead yet again! Insane!
73' GOAL! Adam Jahn gets one back for Crew SC!
68' SUBSTITUTION: Corey Ashe replaces Hector Jimenez for the final sub for Crew SC.
Tonight's attendance at MAPFRE Stadium: 13,114
66' SUBSTITUTION: Roland Alberg replaces Fabian Herbers for the Union.
63' SUBSTITUTION: Crew SC use Dilly Duka to replace Ethan Finlay, burning their second sub of the night.
60' GOAL! Fabian Herbers break the deadlock and gets the Union up on the board! Meanwhile, Crew SC make a substitution, having Adam Jahn replace Ola Kamara.
57' Barnetta curls a shot on goal but it's just wide of the net.
56' Afful feeds Higuain who takes a shot but it sails high. Very close to breaking the dead lock.
53' Three collisions happen within a span of five minutes. Players need to be more cautious now.
50' Free kick Union.
49' Blake collides with Kamara and stays down in a little pain. Kamara was flagged offside so Blake will restart play with an indirect free kick.
HALFTIME: Columbus Crew SC 0-0 Philadelphia Union
43' Meram gets tangled with the ball under his feet and loses control as it rolls to Blake.
38' Meram looks to be in pain as he's holding his ankle. Seems to be from an earlier challenge.
35' A free kick from Higuain is so close to finding the head of Tchani but it sails out for a goal kick.
31' Rosenberry centers a ground ball to Herbers who one times the shot, but Clark is there to make the save. On the other end, Finlay crosses in a ball intended for Kamara but Blake is there to clean up the danger
29' Kamara takes a volley shot from the air but it's not on target.
22' Meram takes a turn in the Philadelphia half and takes the shot but it's wide off of target.
19' Finlay finds Kamara in the 18 yard box, he spins and takes a shot but it sails way high onto the stage.
16' FINLAY SO CLOSE! A cross from Meram finds Finlay who heads it on goal, but Blake is there to make the save!
15' Foul from Trapp on Blake.
14' Another corner for Crew SC.
13' Corner kick Crew SC. It's taken quickly. Meram tries to find Finlay on the far post but the long wingspan of Andre Blake snatches the ball from the air.
9' Rosenberry puts in a good cross but the ball finds the hands of Clark.
6' A long ball intended for Ethan Finlay goes way over his head and out for a goal kick.
KICKOFF!
19:33 PM EST: Teams and match officials are now entering the field. National anthem to follow.
19:21 PM EST: About 10 minutes until kickoff between Crew SC and the Philadelphia Union. Team processions and National Anthem coming soon.
19:09 PM EST: Sprinkles of rain starting to fall here at MAPFRE Stadium. Hopefully nothing serious to come.
Clark; Naess, Parkhurst, Jimenez, Afful; Tchani, Trapp; Finlay, Higuain, Meram; Kamara
18:58 PM EST: Here is the official lineup for Columbus Crew SC.
Fabinho, Yaro, Marquez, Rosenberry; Creavalle, Bedoya; Pontius, Barnetta (c), Herbers; Sapong
18:55 PM EST: Here is the official lineup for the Philadelphia Union.
18:51 PM EST: Both teams take the field for pre-math warmups. And, starting lineups are coming soon!
18:45 PM EST: Local tv weather radar indicates rain coming. Not sure if storms, or rain, but hoping for a clear night of soccer here in Ohio.
18:30 PM EST: Hello everyone! Tyler Fisher reporting LIVE from MAPFRE Stadium here in Columbus, Ohio! Today I'll be covering Columbus Crew SC as they play host to Philadelphia Union.
Columbus Crew SC 2-1 Philadelphia Union.
Prediction: Columbus want a win in front of their home fans, and a spot in the playoffs. Philadelphia want a win and to keep their spot in the playoffs alive. The main question is who wants it more? A team somewhat starting to find their form, or a team who's had a rollercoaster season since the All Star break, or both? This game will see it's favor lean towards Crew SC.
The head coach for the Philadelphia Union is Jim Curtain. Gregg Berhalter is the had coach and sporting director for Crew SC.
Blake; Rosenberry, Tribbett, Marquez, Fabinho; Bedoya, Creavalle; Ilsinho, Barnetta, Pontius; Sapong
Projected Lineup: Philadelphia Union (4-2-3-1)
Clark; Jimenez, Naess, Parkhurst, Afful; Saeid, Trapp; Meram, Higuain, Finlay; Kamara
Projected Lineup: Columbus Crew SC (4-2-3-1)
Here is the projected lineups for both Columbus Crew SC and the Philadelphia Union.
The officiating crew for this match is led by center official Allen Chapman. Assistant one on the team bench side is Matthew Nelson, while Andrew Bigelow will be opposite on the far end. The fourth official is listed as Nima Saghafi.
The match is being played at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. Game time starts at 7:30 PM EST.
Another is for the Philadelphia Union is to stop the playmaking ability of both Justin Meram and Ethan Finlay. As mentioned before, Finlay has three goals in two matches, and Meram is the playmaker from the left who can service in balls to the center for a teammate. The foucs for the Union is to limit that to little, or none. A key to the game for Crew SC is to keep the press going. In the recent match, Crew SC held 56% of possession in the first half of the 2-0 win over the Revolution. Consistent turnovers by New England turned into counter attacks for the Black and Gold that turned into either goals, or shots. Crew SC will need to do that again, if they want the three points in front of their home fans.
In this series, it's pretty much all Philadelphia. The Union have won both of the recent meetings between the clubs, the most recent being a 3-2 victory over Crew SC just before the Copa America Centenario break back in June. Both teams are going to field their best, and will give the fans at home, and in the stands quite the show.
On the other hand, the Philadelphia Union are entering this midweek match coming off of a heartbreaking 3-1 loss to Toronto FC. After defeating the New England Revolution two weeks ago by a massive 4-0 score, TFC had other plans to stop the good form of the Union. Goals from Sebastian Giovinco, Jozy Altidore, and Drew Moor, sought the Reds to three points on the road. Ken Tribbett scored the lone goal for Philadelphia.
The momentum from the wild 3-3 draw with NYCFC carried over to help Crew SC secure their fourth win of the season against New England, and most certainly that the win will give them momentum to play well against the Union.
On a defensive note, the addition of Norweigan defender Nicolai Naess has somewhat filled the missing centerback saga. Naess, in just his third game as part of Crew SC brings the physicality that a centerback needs. His ability to shoulder attackers off of the ball and winning aerial battles makes him a feared defender. Although Naess lacks size, he is tough defender to break, and knows how to time tackles perfectly.
Alongside Finlay is Justin Meram who also has been on a hot streak, as he has a goal and an assist in two games. The two on the wings can be very dangerous, and with their speed and playmaking, the Union might just have trouble attempting to keep them off of the scoresheet.
Columbus Crew SC are riding high into this midweek matchup against the Union, after their win this past weekend against the New England Revolution on the road. The win is marked their fourth of the season and their first road win of the season. Midfielder Ethan Finlay has been riding the bebnch the past few games, and got the call to the starting lineup in their 3-3 draw against New York City FC. Finlay became the spark Crew SC needed as he scored twice in their shootout with NYCFC, including the tying goal in second half stoppage time. Finlay also notched the game winner against the Revolution, netting his third goal in two games.
Hello and welcome to VAVEL USA's LIVE coverage of Major League Soccer! This matchup features Columbus Crew SC as they host the Philadelphia Union in an Eastern Conference battle. My name is Tyler Fisher and I will be your host this evening!