The Columbus Crew are on the verge of Concacaf Champions Cup history, storming past Liga MX powerhouse CF Monterrey on Wednesday evening with a 3-1 away victory to take their semifinal series 5-2 on aggregate.
Columbus, who won the opening leg 2-1 at Lower.com Field last week, will face Pachuca in the June final – looking to join the 2022 Seattle Sounders as Major League Soccer’s only Champions Cup winners.
If head coach Wilfried Nancy’s team lifts the CCC trophy next month, they’d secure a spot in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup and 2024 FIFA Intercontinental Cup, plus get regional bragging rights and prize money.
Yet Monterrey struck first at Estadio BBVA, courtesy of a Yevhen Cheberko own goal (11') after Maxi Meza's chip over onrushing Crew goalkeeper Patrick Schulte caromed off the crossbar and in off the Ukrainian defender. But Columbus leveled on the final kick of the first half when Aidan Morris (45+4') picked off a restart by Monterrey goalkeeper Esteban Andrada and fired home the Crew’s first of three away goals.
Diego Rossi (49') put the Crew ahead on the night, and 4-2 on aggregate, with a tidy finish after being slipped through by second-half substitute Alex Matan. Then Jacen Russell-Rowe (89') put the finishing touches on the win with a breakaway finish, sending the 2023 MLS Cup champions past the five-time CCC winners and into their first-ever CCC final.
Goals
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: Columbus made history in Nuevo León, becoming the first MLS team to beat Monterrey in a two-legged series – and doing so convincingly – as well as the seventh MLS side to reach a Champions Cup final in the modern era. This follows a quarterfinal triumph over Tigres UANL, another Liga MX titan. Now, they’ll attempt to join Seattle as the second MLS squad to win the competition after the Rave Green did so in 2022.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: The tenor of the match changed just before halftime when Morris picked off Andrada’s rolled-out restart and fired past the Monterrey goalkeeper.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: Rossi put the series to bed four minutes into the second half. It was his fifth-ever Champions Cup goal – all coming against Liga MX opposition.
Next Up
- CLB: Saturday, May 11 vs. FC Cincinnati (7:45 pm ET | MLS Season Pass, FS1) | MLS regular season
- MTY: Wednesday, May 8 at Tigres UANL (TBD) | Liga MX Clausura Liguilla
Dylan Butler -
