FIRST OF THREE
Columbus Crew SC and D.C. United are set to play their first of three regular-season meetings in 2015 with a showdown at RFK Stadium. Crew SC is slated to return to the nation’s capital on September 19, while the Black-and-Red visit Columbus in the regular-season finale on October 25. All-time, Crew SC is 24- 25-10 against D.C. United, with an 8-18-4 mark on the road. Over the last two seasons, the Black & Gold are unbeaten against the Black-and-Red (3-0-2), including a mark of 1-0-2 last season, when the teams met three times in three different stadiums.
LAST REGULAR SEASON MEETING
On June 7, 2014, Crew SC and D.C. United faced-off at FedExField in a match that would end in a 0-0 draw. Steve Clark notched his third-ever MLS clean sheet in the contest, capped-off by a 96th-minute penalty save on Fabian Espindola’s chipped attempt.
CREW SC ATTACK LEADING LEAGUE ...
Following the Black & Gold’s four-goal performance against Philadelphia, Crew SC now leads MLS in total goals, with 12. Columbus also ranks first in the League in goal differential (six) and assists (13). The Black & Gold have scored five of their 12 goals between minutes 46 and 60, leading the League in goal-scoring within that interval as well.
... AND HIGH-RANKING IN CLUB HISTORY
At the conclusion of the match against Philadelphia on April 25, Crew SC’s season tally of 12 goals represented the second-most goals the club had ever scored by that date in team history. The only year in which Crew SC notched at least 12 goals by a date earlier than April 25th was in 1998. On April 18 of that year, Columbus scored five times to top the Miami Fusion and bring that season’s total to 13 tallies at the time.
CREW SC WRAPS-UP UNBEATEN MONTH
The Black & Gold’s victory over Philadelphia gave the club a 2-0-2 record in April. The unbeaten month was the first for Columbus since September of 2014 (3-0-1). Overall, it was the fourth for Sporting Director and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter during his tenure as the Crew SC boss.
KAMARA MAKES 200TH APPEARANCE ...
With a start against the Union, Crew SC forward Kei Kamara recorded his 200th career MLS appearance. Kamara’s first MLS appearance came on April 1, 2006 for Columbus, where he scored a goal in his debut against Kansas City. The forward has gone on to make 43 total appearances for Columbus, with 12 for San Jose, 32 for Houston and 113 for Kansas City in his career.
... WHILE AMONG LEAGUE LEADERS
Kamara’s goal against the Philadelphia Union gave him five goals on the season. He is now tied for most in the League in the category alongside Vancouver’s Octavio Rivero. The Sierra Leone native is second in MLS in goals/match (0.71). Kamara also is second in MLS in total shots (31) and shots on goal (14).
CREW SC HAS TOP THREE PASSING PERFORMANCES
Against the Philadelphia Union, the Black & Gold passed to a team accuracy rate of 87.9%. That number is the second-highest passing accuracy mark achieved by any MLS club in any match this season. The Black & Gold’s passing performance against Orlando City SC (April 18) is currently the highest mark at 88.1%. Crew SC also holds the third-highest mark, with 87.1% passing against Toronto FC (March 14).
BACK-TO-BACK THREE-GOAL WINS
The Black & Gold defeated Orlando City SC by a 3-0 scoreline ahead of last weekend’s 4-1 win over Philadelphia. This marks the third time in club history that Columbus won back-to-back matches by three or more goals. The club achieved the feat in 1999 on July 24 (4-1 over Dallas) and August 1 (4-0 over Miami), and in 2014 on August 16 (4-1 over LA) and August 23 (3-0 over Houston).
CREW SC SCORES FOUR
Against Philadelphia, Crew SC tallied four goals in a match for the first time since August 16, 2014 vs. the LA Galaxy. Overall, it was the 28th time that the Black & Gold have scored at least four times in a regular-season match. Crew SC is now 26-2-0 in all-time MLS regular-season play when scoring four or more goals.
POSSESSION, PASSING, CHANCES
Crew SC has continued its strong passing and possession play in 2015. According to the League’s official statistician, Opta, Crew SC leads the League in chances created per match (12.1) and big chances created per match (1.6). The Black & Gold also rank second overall in MLS in passing accuracy (82.1%) and third overall in possession (54.0%).
FRANCIS, SAEID LEADING LEAGUE IN PASSING
Among the League’s most accurate passers (min. 100 passes attempted), the top two are members of the Black & Gold. Defender Waylon Francis (93.8%) and midfielder Mohammed Saeid (91.6%) both rank atop the League in passing accuracy.
SHOOTING STAR
Following his three shots attempted against Philadelphia, Crew SC’s Kei Kamara ranks second in MLS in shots/match (4.4) and in total shots (31) .
