Behind a Josh Williamsback-post flick, Columbus Crew SC (4-1-1, 13 pts.) defeated the New England Revolution (1-4-1, 4 pts.) 1-0 on Saturday, April 6 at MAPFRE Stadium.
Defensively, Crew SC was able to tally their fourth clean sheet of the season. Goalkeeper Zack Steffen came through in the 11th minute after parrying a shot wide by New England's Juan Fernando Caicedo to keep the game level at zero before ending the match with two saves. With the shutout, Steffen upped his career total to 23 regular-season clean sheets for the Black & Gold, which is third on the Club's all-time regular-season leaderboard.
The Black & Gold secured the game-winner in the 42nd minute when midfielder Federico Higuain served a free kick into the box, where Williams flicked the ball off his head and into the back of the net. With that assist, Higuain now has 61 assists for his career for Crew SC, which has him tied with Robert Warzycha on the all-time regular-season leaderboard. Additionally, that marks Williams' eighth goal for the Black & Gold and first for the season.
In the 64th minute, New England's Michael Mancienne was shown his second yellow card for the match, leading to the Revolution having to play the remainder of the match with only ten men on the pitch. Also notably, midfielder Niko Hansen made his 2019 debut for Crew SC, when he subbed on for Pedro Santos in the 85th minute of play.
Crew SC has not lost a home match since June 13, 2018, and currently sits alone at the top of the Eastern Conference with 13 points. Additionally, with this victory, the Black & Gold have earned their first sweep for the 2019 regular-season, as they also defeated the Revolution on March 9. Up next, Columbus travels to Montreal to take on the Impact on Saturday, April 13 at 1 p.m. ET at Stade Saputo.
Supporters can watch the match on SportsTime Ohio, stream on FOX Sports GO, or listen on www.ColumbusCrewSC.com (English & Spanish).
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Goal Scoring Rundown:
CLB ā Josh Williams (Federico Higuain), 42nd minute: Williams flicks the ball off his head to the back post from a cross by Higuain. CLB 1, NE 0 | FINAL
Lineups:
Columbus Crew SC
New England Revolution
Match Notes:
- Defender Josh Williams scored Crew SCās game-winning goal ā his first strike of the 2019 regular season ā in tonightās 1-0 victory over the New England Revolution. Williams scored in the 42nd minute on a cross from a Federico Higuain free kick, which Williams headed into the back of the net. The tally was Williamsā first regular-season goal since he scored in a road contest against New York City FC on October 22, 2017, with the match resulting in a 2-2 draw for the Black & Gold. To date, Williams has made 116 regular-season appearances (102 starts) for Columbus, scoring eight goals.
- Midfielder Federico Higuain registered his third assist of the 2019 regular season in tonightās 1-0 victory over the New England Revolution. Higuainās game-winning helper came in the 42nd minute of the contest, as he crossed a ball from a free kick, allowing Josh Williams to score from a header. Through six regular-season appearances (all starts) in 2019, Higuainās three helpers lead the Black & Gold in assists, including one game-winning helper.
- In addition to tallying his third assist of the 2019 regular season, Federico Higuainās helper in the 42nd minute also marked his 61st regular-season assist since joining the Black & Gold in 2012. With that assist, Higuain is now tied with Robert Warzycha on the Crewās list of all-time regular-season assist leaders and needs only one more helper to overtake Warzycha as the outright all-time leader. Notably, Higuainās assist in todayās match marked his 20th game-winning assist in regular-season action, extending his lead as Columbusā leader in this category.
- Zack Steffen recorded his fourth consecutive regular-season shutout during tonightās 1-0 win over the New England Revolution. The goalkeeper made one save against the Revs, helping Crew SC earn its third consecutive home win of the 2019 regular-season and bringing his streak to 444 consecutive minutes without allowing a goal. Additionally, with his shutout in tonightās match, Steffen brought his all-time regular-season total to 23 clean sheets, surpassing Steve Clark to take sole possession of third place on Crew SCās list of all-time regular-season shutout leaders. Currently, Steffen is behind only William Hesmer (41) and Jon Busch (25).
- Niko Hansen made his 2019 regular-season debut in tonightās match, coming in as a substitute in the 85th minute for Pedro Santos. Tonightās appearance was the first for Hansen since starting in a home contest against Minnesota United FC on October 28, 2018. He was selected by Crew SC in the First Round of the 2017 MLS SuperDraft on January 13, 2017.
- Crew SC is undefeated at MAPFRE Stadium across all competitions dating back to June 13 of last year. Over that span, the Black & Gold have posted a winning record of 10-0-2 at home while outscoring opponents 19-8.
- Crew SC has won five of its last seven regular-season meetings against the New England Revolution dating back to August 20, 2016. Over that span, the Black & Gold have posted a record of 6-1-1, keeping a clean sheet in each win.
- Columbus last lost to New England in regular-season action on May 21, 2017.
- Tonightās contest marked Crew SCās 74th all-time regular-season match against the New England Revolution dating back to 1996. Over that span, Columbus has compiled an overall winning record of 38-23-13 against the Revs. The Crew has an overall regular-season home record of 21-8-7 against New England.
- With the 1-0 win against the New England Revolution in tonightās match, Crew SCās 2019 regular-season record is now 4-1-1 (13 points). Next up, Crew SC has a road contest against the Montreal Impact at Stade Saputo on Saturday, April 13 (1:00 p.m. ET / SportsTime Ohio, FOX Sports GO / Streaming online via the āListen Liveā button at 971TheFan.com / Spanish audio stream on ColumbusCrewSC.com).
