Columbus Crew SC will look to maintain momentum as the Black and Gold hit the road to take on D.C. United. Andrew Maniskas/The Pit
[dropcap]A[/dropcap]fter collecting six points in a two-match homestand, the hottest attack in MLS takes the show back on the road to RFK Stadium where the Black and Gold take on hated rivals D.C. United.
The matchup is the first of two matches that will truly show where Columbus stands among the elite in the league this year as Seattle will come to town the following week. This is expected to be a high-octane offensive match and I believe there are plenty of goals to be scored here.
What to expect from D.C. United
Starting XI (4-4-2): Hamid; Franklin, Boswell, Opare, Kemp; DeLeon, Kitchen, Arnaud, Pontius; Espindola, Rolfe
Standings: T-1st, Eastern Conference, 14 points
Form: W-W-D-D-W, 11 points
Unbeaten in their last five, the D.C. United attack is a formidable one, though after the sudden retirement of Eddie Johnson, this attack has surprisingly gotten better as they have spread out the duties to practically everyone. Nobody has more than two goals scored, but when you spread that out and have five members of your squad providing assists, it’s difficult to try and stop when you can’t focus on just one player.
Chris Rolfe and Fabian Espindola are both back and fit, which means that D.C. United should have their first choice players at every position for this match. Rolfe and Espindola link up with each other exceptionally well, both making an equal number of runs and chances to try and set each other up. Expect to see more of the same at the top of the standard 4-4-2 Flat formation.
Outspoken Perry Kitchen will lead the midfield for D.C. United. The extremely popular Kitchen is never one to shy away from an altercation and was fined earlier in the season for mocking the MLS Disciplinary Committee for a lack of suspension on an opposing player during a PK, going so far as to tweet out to “Send him his fine” which MLS did just that. On the field, Kitchen is a solid box-to-box midfielder, and he pairs up quite well with Davy Arnaud, who will hold more behind Kitchen in the pivot.
Nick DeLeon is the fastest winger in MLS, but he’s still dangerous as he loves pumping cross after cross into the box to find his targets. Chris Pontius will line up at the opposite wing and prefers to make more attacking runs into the box to join his fellow attackers.
The back four of United has been decent so far, only surrendering six goals in their seven matches. We’re still waiting to see if Bill Hamid is the next big thing for the USMNT between the pipes, and while he’s off to a good start, his back four has really helped him out so far. Boswell and Opare are a formidable tandom at center back while both Franklin and Kemp are great at making overlapping runs and doubling back into position to defend. Cracking this defense will not be easy.
What to expect from Columbus Crew SC
Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Clark; Grana, Parkhurst, Pogatetz, Francis; Tchani, Saeid; Finlay, Higuain, Meram; Kamara
Standings: 4th,Eastern Conference, 11 points
Form: L-D-D-W-W, 8 points
Why mess with a good thing? Columbus is happy as can be to be back on the regular MLS schedule of one match and six days off, and it’s showing on the field. After a tumultuous schedule that saw the Black and Gold with random bye weeks and cross-country road trips in three days, Crew SC has settled down and are firing on all cylinders. Kei Kamara will start up top again and is in early MVP form with five goals and two assists to his credit. Kamara has been an absolute perfect fit in this system, and there is no reason to believe he’s going to slow down at this point.
You may not have seen him on the scoresheet last week, but Federico Higuain had probably his best match of the season. He was all over the place in his free-roaming #10 role, providing support wherever he could and feeding his fellow attackers. Justin Meram and Ethan Finlay are getting into dangerous positions and the result has been a seven goal explosion in the last two matches. Pipa will not be outworked by anyone on the field, and that’s when he is at his deadliest.
What else can we say about Tony Tchani and Mohammed Saeid? Wil Trapp is still not fit to return, yet the makeshift pairing has really done wonders for this attack. Saeid seems incredibly comfortable in the DLP role and that’s allowing Tchani to move up more and join attacks instead of sitting back in his holding midfield role. Our tactics feature earlier in the week put a focus on this and how important possession in the middle has been, specifically Saeid spreading the ball around and rarely missing his passes.
Building off of the possession question, if Crew SC continues their possession dominance, then expect Francis and Grana to be as forward as ever. The two fullbacks have relished their roles in the attack and will push as high as necessary, allowing Pogatetz and Parkhurst to spread themselves out onto the flanks. Berhalter’s system calls for high fullbacks, and it’s clicking thanks to Francis and Grana.
It will come as no shock that Steve Clark will start in net for Columbus. We feel as though we don’t even have to say this anymore unless something drastic happens. He’s one of the best in MLS and it’s his spot.
Predictions
There will be goals scored in this match. The two teams are playing far too well for it to be a scoreless draw like Columbus’ last venture on the road in New England. We’re starting to see what this attack can truly do now that we’re a few matches into the season, but D.C. United’s defense is going to pose a challenge to this group. Eastern Conference superiority is still very much up for grabs this early, but it would be great to get three points on the road, and that’s what I’m going to predict. Expect a back and forth affair, but I see Columbus continuing their form.
Columbus Crew SC – 3
D.C. United – 1
