Saturday marks the third meeting between Columbus Crew SC and Toronto FC this season—and this time the stakes are even higher. The Reds are in a good spot as they just clinched a playoff berth for the first time in club history with a 2-1 win over the New York Red Bulls on Wednesday. Meanwhile, just one point stands in Crew SC’s way of punching its ticket to the post season as well.
And even if Crew SC clinches the playoffs with an Orlando City loss or tie on Friday night, the competition is still on for one of the top seeds in the Eastern Conference.
“It definitely raises the stakes,” Columbus striker Jack McInerney says. “We could end up out of the playoffs, or we could end up in second place. So going into the game, [it’s] just the same mentality as always, but obviously there’s a little bit more pressure and I think we have to at least get a point out of it.”
Captain Michael Parkhurst says the Black & Gold need to focus on the details to ensure they return to Columbus with points and a spot in the playoffs.
“We just need to do everything a little bit better,” he says. “It’s the time of year where the little things really matter. There’s not going to be much separation between the teams […] Doing the little things on set pieces, little things throughout the game that we’ve preached all year and sometimes that we’ve been slacking on. This is the time of year that you pay for it or it doesn’t lead to a goal for you. In those little areas, we need to get better.”
Head Coach and Sporting Director Gregg Berhalter echoes Parkhurst's emphasis on continued improvement.
“We’re at a point where we can’t be complacent,” Berhalter says. “We want to keep improving.”
Crew SC won its first match over TFC this season 2-0 at home, but the Reds responded a couple months later with a 3-3 draw, after trailing 3-0, at MAPFRE Stadium.
While that draw was a disappointment for the Black & Gold, midfielder Ethan Finlay wants to make up for another match. Toronto took three points from Crew SC last year at BMO Field with a game-winner in the 92nd minute—a match that still haunts Finlay.
“When I think back - and a lot of these guys think back to it - it's the result that we dropped there last year,” Finlay says. “Those were important points down the stretch [...] No one was happy about that, so it’ll be a good opportunity for us to go and make it right.”
The midfielder has seen personal success against the Reds this year notching two assists and a goal in the previous two matchups. So, Finlay is well-versed in breaking down the Toronto defense. “It’s going to be good soccer,” he says. “We just have to continue to use our movements on the wings and take advantage of that. We feel like that’s one of our strengths and then obviously Kei [Kamara] is always a handful in the box.”
At 22 goals, Kamara is currently tied with Toronto midfielder Sebastain Giovinco in the race for the Golden Boot. Both players are also the frontrunners for MLS MVP.
Finlay says the Black & Gold will do their best in shutting down Giovinco and helping Kamara take the lead in goals scored.
“You want to play against the best, you want to compete against the best,” Finlay says. “So for him [Kamara] to be able to go up and play against him [Giovinco], it’s a battle. As a team, we will try to shut Giovinco down and hope we can reward our big man.”
Crew SC and Toronto FC kick off at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Watch the match on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel or listen to it on CD 102.5 FM, La Mega 103.1 FM or ColumbusCrewSC.com. For more Eastern Conference action, also check out tonight's match between Orlando City SC and New York City FC. An Orlando City loss or tie would secure Crew SC's playoff berth.
