Columbus Crew will host a team that finished the season as the best side in the Major League Soccer. In this two-game playoff, they all start with the same chances of clinching their ticket to the MLS Cup Final. While the Red Bulls were more consistant throughout the season, the Crew has been on fire in their most recent games.
The face of this franchise at the moment is a man called Kei Kamara. The 31-year old player from Sierra Leone has been big for his team this season. 22 goals and eight assists this season have made Kamara a serious MVP Candidate by the time the year ends.
Columbus Crew had not made it this far since 2008 and it was thanks to a great effort by Kamara that scored two goals in the second leg against Impact Montreal. That brace gave Kamara's team the ticket to the Eastern Conference final, eliminating Didier Drogba and his team in the process.
Ethan Finlay has also shown a high level this season. He has racked-up 12 goals and 13 assists so far. The two players, Kamara and Finlay's chemistry on the field was undeniable. They helped each other through so many games creating goal opportunities for Columbus Crew.
Offensively, both teams are pretty even. Up to this point, Columbus Crew has scored 62 goals and the New York Red Bulls are up with 64. Defensively speaking, the Crew has had a harder time stopping strikers. The team has conceded 56 goals while NYRB has only allowed 43.
The Red Bulls seem like a team that has been working together for years but that is not the case. There were so many changes in the locker room and the organization before the season started it is almost unveilibable to see them standing in this stage. They lost Thierry Henry and they got a new coach, Jesse Marsch.
The season for the team from the Big Apple could have been easily shadowed by competing with New York Football Club's imported talent. They had brought in David Villa, Andrea Pirlo and Frank Lampard. None of those names really worked and the NYRB were the only team to get into the playoffs.
Winning their secodn Supporters Shield in three years is a proof of the great management in this organization and just how committed every member has been to their success. The team has won five of their last six games and have recorded 20 wins, ten losses and six draws in their last 36 games.
Bradley Wright Phillips is their best striker with 18 goals has enjoyed this season like no other. He gets to play with his brother Shaun Wright Phillips in almost every game. Mike Grella also made headlines with this team scoring the fastest goal in MLS history in the final games of the regular season.
In their last five previous meeting, no game has ended in a draw. Three of those games, including their most recent matchup, ended in favor of the Red Bulls. In two of them, the scoreline was 2-1. Playing at home, Columbus Crew has an average of scoring 1.4 goals/game, while NYRB has the same one playing on the road.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
Columbus Crew 2 - 0 New York RB
November 22, 2015 5:00pmColumbus Crew Stadium, Columbus, United StatesThis match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
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