After earning a solid three points on the road midweek against Toronto FC, the Columbus Crew returned home to take on the Philadelphia Union. The two teams previously met earlier in the season, with an Eloy Room mistake giving the Union a 1-0 win. Columbus looked to continue their unbeaten streak against the Union who went into the match sitting in third place in the Eastern Conference.
A very not so boring first half
Normally, Columbus and their opponent go back-and-forth generating chance after chance. But something about the Union made Columbus push even harder.
It started just 30 seconds into the match when defender Jonathan Mensah attempted to kick the ball out of the air, making contact with a Union player resulting in a yellow card.
The Crew had an opportunity to take the lead when they were awarded a freekick from 30+ yards out, but the attempt by Lucas Zelarayan was easily saved by Andre Blake.
Penalty save by Blake
Just minutes later, the Black & Gold were awarded a penalty kick after midfielder Sean Zawadzki was brought down inside of the penalty area. Pedro Santos stepped up to take but the attempt was saved by Blake with an outstretched hand.
? DRE PK SAVE ALERT ?#DOOP | #CLBvPHI 0-0 pic.twitter.com/MdhnhlrKPM
— PhilaUnion (@PhilaUnion) July 4, 2022
The Union had their few chances, but couldn’t convert. However, the visiting side didn’t go down without a fight earning a few corners to really test the back three defensemen of the Crew.
Jacen Russell-Rowe
The intensity of the match picked up in the 36th minute when Jack Elliott appeared to shoulder Jacen Russell-Rowe out of bounds, forcing the Hampton, Ontario native to crash into a sideline guard rail. The Crew, rightfully so, came to Russell-Rowe’s defense in anger.
Second half
The Crew seemed to have gotten on the board in the 66th minute when Lucas Zelarayan hit home a pass from Santos to give the Crew a 1-0 lead. However, the goal got taken back due to Erik Hurtado being offside, impeding the vision of Blake.
Despite multiple attempts to try and get the goal to break the ice, the Crew and Union finished the match scoreless, splitting the points.
