Dominic Oduro’s second-half goal rescued a point for the Crew against Philadelphia Union, but it feels like two points lost as Columbus is left to rue the missed opportunities to secure their first home win of the season.
With spring weather finally starting to appear it seemed like the perfect night for quality soccer, however, the game started off at a slow tempo with neither team really threatening to score and the majority of the game being contested in the middle of the park.
In the 34th minute, Philadelphia’s Jack McInerney opened the scoring after Danny Cruz broke the Crew back line and squared the ball across Andy Gruenebaum’s goal, giving McInerney a simple tap-in.
Jairo Arrieta returned from International duty as a second half substitute. The Costa Rica forward looked lively and full of running and allowed Oduro to move to the right flank and give the team a bit more of a balanced attacking threat.
After missing a couple of golden chances throughout the game, Dominic Oduro finally found the back of the net in the 72nd minute. The Ghanaian fired the ball past Union ‘keeper Zac ManMath after being played through by Eddie Gaven.
The Crew have only lost one game so far this season, but with two draws at home and a handful of chances that weren’t taken, Crew fans will rightly be a little disappointed not to have a few more points on the board.
Matt Ellis is a freelance photographer who covers bands that visit the city and the Columbus Crew MLS team. More about Matt can be found at Matt Ellis Photography.