COLUMBUS CREW SC vs ORLANDO CITY SC MAPFRE STADIUM, Columbus, Ohio April 18, 2015 (WEEK 7, MLS Game #59) 7:30 p.m. ET (MLS LIVE)
Columbus Crew SC and Orlando City SC meet for the first time this season in what has become a vital match in the Eastern Conference early-season reckonings when the clubs face off Saturday evening. Crew SC return home off a two-game, coast-to-coast road swing where they took a pair of draws, last a scoreless result at the New England Revolution. Orlando City kicked off their two-game road swing with a tremendous result, winning 2-0 at the Portland Timbers last weekend.
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This match is blacked out the TWCSC-Ohio broadcast region.
The Crew return home off of a coast-to-coast road swing that saw them gain points in both matches, a 2-2 draw at Vancouver Whitecaps FC last Wednesday evening, and a scoreless draw at the New England Revolution on Saturday.
Kei Kamara scored a pair of goals for the seventh time in his MLS career in the midweek draw at Vancouver, his first two-goal game in the league since Aug. 10, 2013, for Sporting Kansas City vs. New England. Kamara has three goals in his return to the league, tied for second in the MLS Golden Boot standings.
Cyle Larin, the No. 1 overall selection in the 2015 SuperDraft out of the University of Connecticut, scored his first professional goal to send Orlando City SC on their way to a 2-0 victory at the Portland Timbers on Sunday. The victory snapped a three-game winless slide for OCSC.
Kaká scored his third goal for Orlando City to seal the win in Portland, netting a late penalty kick. Kaká has scored half of City’s goals this season.
REFEREE: Ricardo Salazar. AR1 (bench): Gianni Facchini; AR2 (opposite): Andrew Bigelow; 4th: Kevin Terry Jr. MLS Career: 197 games; FC/gm: 26.7; Y/gm: 3.4; R: 56; pens: 68
SUSPENDED: none SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: none SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: ORL: Amobi Okugo DISABLED LIST: none INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
HEAD-TO-HEAD ALL-TIME: First meeting. RETURN MATCHES: 5/30: Orlando City SC vs. Columbus Crew SC, 7:30 p.m. ET; 8/1: Orlando City SC vs. Columbus Crew SC, 7:30 p.m. ET
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION vs COLUMBUS CREW SC GILLETTE STADIUM, Foxborough, Mass. April 11, 2015 (WEEK 6, MLS Game #48) 3 p.m. ET (CSN-NE, TWCSC-Ohio, MLS LIVE)
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This match is blacked out in the TWCSC-Ohio broadcast region.
Foes in the MLS Cup Playoffs a season ago, the New England Revolution and Columbus Crew SC meet for the first time this season when the clubs face off Saturday afternoon at Gillette Stadium. The Revolution have won two games in a row off a three-game goalless start, their last match a 2-0 win at the Colorado Rapids last weekend. Crew SC started off their bicoastal road trip with a quality result, gaining a 2-2 draw at overall leader Vancouver Whitecaps FC at BC Place on Wednesday evening.
Lee Nguyen scored his first goal of the season, and Kelyn Rowe added an assist following a two-goal game the week before, as the Revolution won their second match on the trot in their 2-0 victory at the Colorado Rapids on Saturday. The Revs are 2-0-1 after dropping their opening two matches.
During the regular season a year ago, Crew SC won two of the three meetings, including a 2-1 win July 26 at Gillette Stadium, their first victory there since 2011.
But the Revolution won both legs of the Eastern Conference Semifinal Series between the teams, a 4-2 victory in Columbus in the first leg, then a 3-1 triumph in Foxborough in the return match to win the series 7-3 on aggregate.
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This match is blacked out in Canada and the TWCSC-Ohio broadcast region.
The MLS week gets an early start for the first time this season when Vancouver Whitecaps FC put their club-record winning streak on the line against a Columbus Crew SC side beginning a tricky road swing when the clubs meet Wednesday evening at BC Place. Whitecaps FC extended their winning run to four games – a high for their four MLS seasons – with a 2-0 home win Saturday against the LA Galaxy. Crew SC start a bicoastal road swing with the trip to Vancouver, their last match a 2-1 home loss to the New York Red Bulls on March 28.
Octavio Rivero scored his fourth goal in the opening five games of the season – leading the MLS Golden Boot standings – as Whitecaps FC won an MLS club-record fourth consecutive game in their 2-0 win against the LA Galaxy on Saturday evening at BC Place.
The Crew return to action after a weekend off, falling for the second time in three games in their last match, a 2-1 home defeat to the New York Red Bulls.
Crew SC have not defeated Whitecaps FC since the 2011 season – Vancouver’s first year in MLS. The ‘Caps have won the lone meeting between the teams each of the last three years, including a 1-0 victory in Columbus last May 10.
Whitecaps FC have won the only meeting between the teams at BC Place, a 2-1 victory in 2013. Crew SC have won once in Vancouver – a 1-0 victory in 2011, at Empire Field.
SUSPENDED: CLB: Federico Higuain (through April 8) SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: none SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: VAN: Gershon Koffie DISABLED LIST: VAN: Andre Lewis INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
HEAD-TO-HEAD ALL-TIME (5 meetings): Whitecaps FC 3 wins, 5 goals … Crew SC 2 wins, 4 goals … Ties 0 AT VANCOUVER (5 meetings): Whitecaps FC 1 win, 2 goals … Crew SC 1 win, 2 goals … Ties 0
COLUMBUS CREW SC vs NEW YORK RED BULLS MAPFRE STADIUM, Columbus, Ohio March 28, 2015 (WEEK 4, MLS Game #31) 7 p.m. ET (MLS LIVE)
A pair of clubs reaching for Eastern Conference supremacy meet in an early-season test for both sides when Columbus Crew SC play host to the New York Red Bulls on Saturday evening at Mapfre Stadium. Crew SC opened their home campaign two weeks ago with their first victory, knocking off Toronto FC 2-0. The Red Bulls are on the road after gaining their first win of the season last weekend, a 2-0 home win against arch-rivals D.C. United.
Crew SC return to action after a weekend off, winning their first game of the year on March 14 with a 2-0 win against Toronto FC in Columbus.
Lloyd Sam netted his second goal in as many games as the Red Bulls won for the first time under new head coach Jesse Marsch, a 2-0 victory against D.C. United on Sunday afternoon. The Red Bulls have a win and a draw in their two games to start the season.
The teams evenly split their three meetings a season ago, each winning once with one draw. The tied game came in the only match in Columbus, a 1-1 result on April 26.
Crew SC won 3-1 at Red Bull Arena on Oct. 19, their first win at the Red Bulls since 2010. The Red Bulls had won two of the four home meetings in between with two draws.
SUSPENDED: none DISABLED LIST: none INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: CLB: Waylon Francis (CRC; vs PAR 3/26, vs PAN 3/31); Wil Trapp (U.S. U-23); Justin Meram (IRQ; vs COD 3/28, 3/31) ... NYR: Karl Ouimette (CAN; vs GUA 3/27, vs PUR 3/30); Kemar Lawrence, Dane Richards (JAM; vs VEN 3/27, vs CUB 3/30)
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (60 meetings): Crew 25 wins (0 shootout), 73 goals … Red Bulls 26 wins (0 shootout), 84 goals … Ties 9 AT COLUMBUS (30 meetings): Crew 15 wins (0 shootout), 40 goals…Red Bulls 11 wins (0 shootout), 39 goals…Ties 4 RETURN MATCHES: 7/4: Columbus Crew SC vs. New York Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m. ET; 10/3: New York Red Bulls vs. Columbus Crew SC, 7 p.m.