It didn’t take Adam Bedell long to show his goal-scoring presence.
In what was his first start of the season for Columbus Crew SC, the forward seized the opportunity, scoring a brace in a 3-1 showcase against the Richmond Kickers to advance the Black & Gold to the U.S. Open Cup Round of 16.
Bedell's brace and Crew SC's first away win of the season were confidence boosters for both, as the team seeks to take the momentum into next week’s regular season matchup with the New England Revolution.
“Obviously, we don’t have a game this weekend, but we have to use this for momentum going into MLS,” Bedell said. “Hopefully in our next game, we can get a win against New England. Obviously for the Open Cup, it is a big tournament, and obviously we want to win this too. This is momentum and we have to use it.”
Sporting Director & Head Coach Gregg Berhalter used the Open Cup match in Richmond to give players who don't feature quite as regularly an opportunity to shine.
He was glad to see Bedell seized the moment.
“Obviously, it is good to have guys getting the confidence of scoring goals," Berhalter said. "For Bedell, he had a good chance and he took it.”
At a staggering height of 6’7”, the forward from Livonia, Michigan has the honor of being the tallest current player on any MLS roster. Despite his size, the 23-year-old has shown to be an agile player with the instincts of a pure striker.
“Once the ball gets wide, my first thing is to make a good run whether it is near post or far post,” Bedell said about his first goal against Richmond. “I was the first guy, so I shot in front of their weak-sided center back, I got behind their strong-sided center back and the ball was perfect from Ben Speas. It doesn’t get any better.
"It makes my job a whole lot easier when the service is that good,” Bedell added. “So I just find the back of the net.”
Bedell's first goal of the match illustrated that play over the wings can be a recipe for success for the Black & Gold.
“I think it was the quick ball movement to switch the field and open up the spaces,” Berhalter said. “Once we had the space on the side, we were taking advantage of that with the numbers that we were moving over to that space. Overall, I think it was pretty good.”
Debuting in a 3-5-2 formation, contrary to the usual 4-2-3-1, Crew SC's wingers had a positive impact on Bedell’s ability to get involved in his first start for the Black & Gold this season.
In 2014, Bedell made seven starts for the Black & Gold, tallying two goals in 17 appearances. In those matches, the forward sported an impressive shots to shots-on-target ratio, getting the ball on frame 11 of 15 tries last season.
Despite his strong performance in Richmond, Bedell isn’t getting ahead of himself, as he is waiting for his next opportunity.
“To get two goals in my first start, it was special,” Bedell said. “It’s just one game. You move onto the next one and you try to do it again.”
