Crew SC’s 1-0 win over the Houston Dynamo on Saturday night wasn’t exactly the same spectacle as the 3-2 goal-scoring frenzy against New York City FC a week earlier. But the Black & Gold’s second win in a row emphasized Columbus’ abilities to adapt and maintain focus to get a result.
“It was a different win, definitely,” midfielder Justin Meram said after the match. “It was a weird win. When they went down a man, they stayed really compact and made it difficult for us at times, but we kept our heads in it and we didn’t make any bonehead mistakes. It was a professional game by us and I think we just killed the time with possession and they really didn’t have an answer.”
After Houston goalkeeper Tyler Deric deprived Federico Higuaín of a goal-scoring opportunity in the box and saw a red card in the 18th minute, Crew SC took the lead on a penalty kick by Kei Kamara and never gave up control of the match. The Black & Gold maintained 73% possession and held the Dynamo to just four shots.
“Everyone might take their foot off the gas [after the red card],” Meram said. “But we stayed in-tune and made sure they didn’t really have any chances, and we closed the game out.”
Crew SC kept knocking on the door for a second goal, but Houston kept its backline tight and played high, catching the Black & Gold offside nine times. Despite not putting away another goal, Sporting Director and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter was proud of his team’s ability to stay composed, calling it a “professional performance.”
“When the other team is very defensive and has a clear game plan to limit you from scoring, it becomes challenging,” Berhalter said. “I’m looking at this as a positive thing, because I think that the mindset of the guys and the performance of the guys to keep going and keep going and still stay balanced was, to me, something that’s going to help us down the season, having dealt with this and having played like that.”
Wil Trapp agreed with his coach saying Crew SC’s approach to the lone meeting with Houston didn’t change after red card. The Black & Gold stayed organized, patient and sharp throughout the night.
“In this game, we stuck to our game plan regardless of what happened on the field,” Trapp said. “[The red card] didn’t really change how we were going to approach the game. But, to piggyback off what Gregg said, the professionalism of the performance, the relentless effort, I thought was really key in finishing out the game.”
With six points from its last two matches, Crew SC is excited for its next challenge to take on the Seattle Sounders at CenturyLink Field on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.
“Our next task is Seattle and it’s going to be fun,” Berhalter said. “It’s a great atmosphere, they have a good team and we’ll do our best.”
