LoIn what could be their last season in Ohio, Columbus Crew SC is surely not going down without a fight. After defeating the reigning MLS Cup champions 2-0 last week, the Black and Gold return for their home opener against the Montreal Impact.
Columbus Crew SC vs Montreal Impact
Columbus got their season off on the right foot, defeating Toronto FC last week, 2-0. Goals from Federico Higuain and Gyasi Zardes helped lift Crew SC to victory at BMO Field. This week, they face off against the Impact, who come into this match coming off of a 2-1 loss to Canadian rivals, the Vancouver Whitecaps.
History has not been on the Impacts' side as they dropped both games last year and haven't beaten Crew SC since April of 2016.
Columbus Crew SC Mini-Preview
All the murmur for opening week was the talk of reigning MLS Champs Toronto FC and their strong all-star team that was made to fruition during the offseason. While on the other side, more questions than answers were raised about Columbus who lost to Toronto in the Eastern Conference Finals last year.
Columbus also saw two of their key players make way (Justin Meram traded to Orlando City SC, and Ola Kamara traded to the Los Angeles Galaxy in exchange for Zardes).
In addition, midfielder Federico Higuain also stated that last season could have been his last year with Columbus. They eventually resigned him to a one-year deal, and all was well.
Predicted Lineup: 4-2-3-1 (Head coach: Gregg Berhalter)
Steffen;
Valenzuela--Mensah--Abubakar--Afful
Artur--Trapp(C)
Santos--Higuain--Martinez
Zardes
Notes: In their last seven home matches, Columbus is undefeated, sitting at a 6W-0L-1D record. Valenzuela, Higuain, and Abubakar were also named to the Team Of The Week for Week 1.
Montreal Impact Mini-Preview
The loss to Vancouver isn't what Remi Garde was hoping for in his coaching debut. The Impact conceded twice in a span of seven minutes before Matteo Mancosu pulled one back to make it 2-1. Mancosu struggled last year, but his strike was positive for the team. Montreal also saw the debut of former Crew SC defender Jukka Raitala, who slid in next to Victor Cabrera in central defense.
This past Monday, Montreal signed center-back Rod Fanni to replace Zakaria Diallo, who appears to be out for five months with a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Predicted Lineup: 4-3-3 (Head Coach: Remi Garde)
Bush
Petrasso--Cabrera--Raitala--Lovitz
Krolicki--Piette--Taider
Edwards--Mancosu--Piatti
The All-Time series falls in favor of Columbus, who has eight wins and has scored 26 goals. The Impact has five wins and has scored 22 goals. The two teams have only played to a draw twice.
The last meeting in Columbus, the Black and Gold came away with a huge 4-1 victory back in June of 2017.
Chris Penso will be the center official for this match. His assistants are CJ Morgante and Brian Dunn. The fourth official on the side is Alejandro Mariscal. Hilario Grajeda will man the VAR.
Prediction:
Columbus, having beaten one Canadian team already, will look to keep up the pace against Montreal, who come into this match 0-0-1. Montreal would like to get a win against Columbus who now have to rely on goals coming from Zardes, but there is no telling if he can be stopped.
Columbus Crew SC 3-0 Montreal Impact