United had the opportunity to play in front of a home crowd for the first time in 2018 when they tied Houston in a thrilling 2-2 draw last weekend at the Maryland SoccerPlex. The team return to the road now as they travel to Columbus to play Crew SC Saturday night at 6 PM ET. Pregame coverage starts at 5:30 PM on NewsChannel 8 and CW Richmond.
Last week, the Black-and-Red showed their moxie as a group and fought back from a two-goal halftime deficit to earn a crucial point with a dramatic 97th-minute equalizer from Luciano Acosta. Head coach Ben Olsen will hope to turn the team’s impressive second half in Boyds, Md., into a full 90-minute performance at MAPFRE Stadium against a strong Columbus side.
Offseason acquisition Darren Mattocks continued his goal scoring form in Week 3 after he curled a ball past Houston’s Chris Seitz in the 50th minute of the match to score in his second consecutive start—it's the first time he’s achieved the feat since July 2014. Midfield maestro Luciano Acosta then provided the Black-and-Red with a late push against the Dynamo in his first start of 2018. His 97th-minute equalizer was the latest goal in club history and served as a reminder to fans of Acosta’s ability to influence the outcome of games.
The Crew have started 2018 with the same quality that defined the second half of their 2017 season. They are 2-0-1 and are one of only five teams in the league that are undefeated so far this year. Columbus forward Gyasi Zardes is relishing his new environment and has scored three goals in three starts for the Crew after transitioning from the LA Galaxy in the offseason. The Columbus defense has only conceded two goals in three matches and average 0.67 goals allowed per game, setting up for what should be a good challenge for United's attack on Saturday.
With a number of international friendlies in the coming week, both sides will be without some of their key contributors who have been called up to their respective national teams. Five Black-and-Red players were called into international duty, including winger Zoltán Stieber (Hungary) and midfielder Ulises Segura (Costa Rica), who have each started in all three of United's matches this season. Columbus goalkeeper Zack Steffen, who has already recorded two shutouts (T-first in MLS) in 2018 after an impressive breakout season in 2017, is on duty with the U.S. Men's National Team, while midfielder Wil Trapp, the Crew's usual captain, is also with Steffen and the American squad in North Carolina.
Even with Steffen and Trapp gone, the Black-and-Red will have their work cut out against Columbus as they look to beat the fellow founding club in Ohio for the first time since Aug. 18, 2007.
