Crew forward Ibrahim Aliyu breaks away from Toronto midfielder Kosi Thompson at Saturday’s Crew game. Credit: Michael Goulet | Lantern Photographer
With less than a month remaining in the MLS regular season, the Columbus Crew are in a tight battle for an Eastern Conference playoff position.
The Crew played to a 1-1 draw with Toronto FC Saturday night at Lower.com Field, in a physical game that featured 32 combined fouls. The end result for Columbus was less than ideal, as six clubs are currently separated by just three points in the standings.
Despite the draw, Crew head coach Wilfried Nancy said he is confident the team can still make a run into the postseason.
“We know that we have everything in our control to win games,” Nancy said. “This is what we are facing right now, and the only thing is to step back and analyze, and we’re gonna find a solution.”
The opening minutes of play were a feel-out process for both Columbus and Toronto as neither side dominated possession or created scoring threats.
In the 16th minute, Columbus struck first.
After capitalizing on a loose ball in Toronto territory, Crew left wing Max Arfsten fed a pass to striker Wessam Abou Ali, who dribbled to the center of the box and scored past goalkeeper Luka Gavran.
Ali’s night ended just 15 minutes later due to a right ankle injury.
Toronto used a pass-heavy approach, but had no success getting the ball into the final third.
In the 33rd minute, Crew striker Daniel Gazdag had a chance to extend the lead off a set-piece free kick, but the ball went past the post and out of play.
By halftime, Toronto held the advantage in ball possession at 54%, and it made the most of that momentum.
In the 51st minute, left back Richie Laryea streaked down the sideline and caught the Crew defense napping, allowing him to score from the right side of the box to tie the game at 1-1.
Columbus pushed to retake the lead, but was denied in the 55th and 58th minutes.
Despite the quick start to the second half, the Toronto offense continued to have its own struggles.
Across the last 25 minutes of play, Columbus had multiple opportunities to take the lead, but with every unsuccessful attempt, the energy in Lower.com slowly drained away.
The Crew made one final push in extra time, but were denied three consecutive times to end the game. Columbus midfielder Dylan Chambost said the Crew is ready to move forward.
“We have to keep working, and the result is going to be better,” he said.
The Crew (13-7-11) will return to the pitch next Saturday when they travel to Soldier Field to play the Chicago Fire (13-11-6) at 8:30 p.m.
