By The Numbers | Crew face Philadelphia Union on Wednesday in return to MLS

Fresh off of Sunday night’s electric Leagues Cup championship, the Columbus Crew – the defending league champs – return to MLS action on Wednesday when they travel east to face the Philadelphia Union for the second time in a week.

Numbers to Know

11 – Wednesday night marks the Crew’s return to league action against a club it played… last Wednesday. Last week, the Crew beat the Union, 3-1, in the Leagues Cup semifinals. Now, the clubs rematch days removed from their Leagues Cup campaigns. While Columbus hosted and beat LAFC, 3-1, for the first Leagues Cup title in Club history, the Philadelphia Union also played Sunday and lost against the Colorado Rapids in the competition’s third-place match. But between now and Oct. 19, the Black & Gold have 11 games remaining in the MLS regular season. The reigning league champions – and now Leagues Cup champions – sit third in the Eastern Conference as they play their first regular season game since July 20 at Atlanta United FC.

9 – Cucho Hernández had a nice Leagues Cup Final, didn’t he? The Colombian scored twice on Sunday against LAFC, including the game winner in the 92nd minute. Don’t forget about his assist two minutes later to Jacen Russell-Rowe to secure the silverware. Cucho has four goals in his last three games and had a goal or assists in every Leagues Cup game. Now, as attention returns to the league campaign, it’s worth remembering he has 13 goals and eight assists in 18 MLS appearances in 2024.

10a – Just like the Crew, the Union enter Wednesday night following a busy Leagues Cup run. In fact, Philly had two more games in the competition because the Crew were able to skip the group stage portion of the tournament. Also like the Crew, the Union’s last MLS game was July 20 – a 3-0 home win over Nashville SC. The Union is a strong opponent, but it should be noted that its head coach, Jim Curtain, said his side needed to play a “perfect” match to beat Columbus at Lower.com Field. Let’s see if it takes the same when the Black & Gold are on the road.

10b – Dániel Gazdag was the player to highlight last Wednesday and he’s Philadelphia’s player to watch this Wednesday. He scored in that meeting and has 14 leagues goals through 21 MLS appearances in 2024. The Hungarian has scored 54 goals regular-season goals for the Union since he joined in 2021. Those aren’t Cucho numbers, but they’re nothing to balk at, either.

When They Last Played

Hopefully you haven’t already forgotten last Wednesday’s semifinal cup win against the Union. The Crew won, 3-1, and not only clinched a spot in the Leagues Cup Final, but also a spot in next year’s Concacaf Champions Cup. Diego Rossi produced a first-half brace, while Cucho added a third in the 53rd minute. Gazdag scored Philly’s lone goal in the 32nd minute. Columbus lost, 4-1, when these clubs last met at Subaru Park on Feb. 25, 2023. That match was the 2023 MLS season opener, and the Crew’s first with head coach Wilfried Nancy.