Federico Higuain proved to be a handful for Servando Carrasco and the Orlando City SC defense (photo credit: Daniel Herlensky / Columbus Crew SC Communications )
The Orlando City Lions trip to Ohio to face the Columbus Crew did not end in their favor. As a result, there are no longer any undefeated teams remaining in the MLS. The Columbus Crew advance to a 3-1 record after a 2-0 victory over the Lions, while the Lions have a 2-1 record.
Coming into the match, the Lions had only conceded 1 goal. Crew Forward Justin Meram changed this rather suddenly in the 14th minute. Meram seen opportunity as Orlando City’s backline waited for an offsides call. With poise and determination, he created just enough space between him and Jonathan Spector to score.
Colubus Crew SC midfielder Artur making the pass to Justin Meram, who had a brace against Orlando City SC on Saturday night (photo credit: Daniel Herlensky / Columbus Crew SC Communications )
Orlando forward Cyle Larin and midfielder Nelson Rivas missed key opportunities in the first half that could have changed the outcome of the game. To no avail, Larin’s second half efforts would create more opportunities for the team. Justin Meram provided the icing on the cake for Columbus Crew in the 77th minute. A counter attack from the Crew allowed Meram to get behind enemy lines. Weaving between Lion defenders, Meram fires a shot well out of the reach of Joe Bendik.
“It’s our third game of the season so it’s not too surprising to say that we weren’t deadly and real sharp in the attacking third of the field” said Coach Jason Kreis during a post-game interview. Orlando’s week two game was canceled due to bad weather which can be seen as a disadvantage since other teams have had more game experience to build chemistry. Kreis later stated “we are obviously disappointed that we didn’t get the result [win]but we’ve still got a lot of positives that we are moving forward with.
