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Before the start of the weekend, the match between Philadelphia Union and Columbus Crew was undoubtedly one of the most anticipated. These are two of the best teams in the Eastern Conference and the entire MLS.
On one side, Columbus Crew arrived with an unbeaten record on the road. On the other hand, Philadelphia had been strong at home, with four wins, one draw, and just one loss. The impressive form of both sides only increased the expectations for the match, and what unfolded on the pitch proved that the hype was well deserved.
Columbus lined up in their traditional 3-4-3 formation, with one minor adjustment: Diego Rossi played as a false 9. The overall dynamics, however, remained the same — the team wanted to maintain possession by building up through close player combinations and width provided by the wingbacks.
Philadelphia defended in a 4-4-2 and attacked in a 3-5-2, keeping compact lines to block Columbus from playing through the middle. The Union pushed their lines up to press when Columbus played the ball backward.
In the first 45 minutes, Columbus had more possession but couldn't assert their usual dominance. Philadelphia defended the spaces well, looked dangerous on the counterattack, and frequently tried to exploit the space behind Columbus's high defensive line. Their goal came just like that: in the 44th minute, Andrew Rick played a beautiful long ball to Sullivan, who crossed to Baribo to tap in the opener. The play, however, sparked controversy, as Sullivan appeared to be offside.
The second half saw a more open match. Philadelphia remained dangerous on the counter, while Columbus continued to impose their playing style. In the 60th minute, Chambost made a strong overlapping run, received the ball from Farsi, and crossed it to Arfsten, who finished cleanly to level the match.
However, the draw didn't last long. Just three minutes later, Jean Jacques found space behind Columbus' defense and crossed to Baribo, who again set up the play — this time for the young Westfield, who struck a beautiful shot to restore Philadelphia's lead.
Just when it seemed the home side would walk away with the win, in the 90+7th minute, Chambost took a corner, Diego Rossi flicked it at the near post, and Zawadzki slotted it home to secure the draw for Columbus Crew.
Upcoming Fixtures
Philadelphia Union hosts the LA Galaxy this Wednesday at 8:30 PM at Subaru Park. Meanwhile, Columbus Crew travels to Canada to face CF Montréal on Wednesday at 8:30 PM.
Team Standings
With the draw, Philadelphia moved up to third place with 23 points. Columbus remains in second place with 25 points — the same as Cincinnati, but with fewer wins.
Lineups:
Philadelphia Union: Andrew Rick; Kai Wagner, Nathan Harriel, Jakob Glesnes, Frankie Westfield; Quinn Sullivan (Chris Donovan 79'), Danley Jean Jacques (Jesus Bueno 78'), Jovan Lukic (Jeremy Rafanello 89'), Indiana Vassilev; Tai Baribo (Olwethu Makhanya 69'), Bruno Damiani (Mikael Uhre 69').
Unused substitutes: Oliver Semmle, Nick Pariano, Alejandro Bedoya, Cavan Sullivan.
Columbus Crew: Patrick Schulte; Yevhen Cheberko (Malte Amundsen 60'), Sean Zawadzki, Steven Moreira, Mohamed Farsi; Aziel Jackson (Jacen Russell-Rowe 60'), Dylan Chambost, Darlington Nagbe (Lassi Lappalainen 90'), Max Arfsten (Amar Sejdic 89'); Daniel Gazdag (Ibrahim Aliyu 78'), Diego Rossi.
Unused substitutes: Nicholas Hagen, Cesar Ruvalcaba, Taha Habroune, Derrick Jones.
