The highlights didn't do the match justice. Even down 2-nil, Crew looked the more menacing side - far more possession, more corners, more shots, etc - granted, through 75 minutes, FCC were more ruthless with their chances. This was a showpiece match for MLS. Hugely entertaining football.
What these highlights don’t show is that Columbus had 63% possession and outshot Cincy 26 to 11. Cincy was opportunistic, but the better team won in the end through sheer volume of chances created.
St. Louis City fan here, and have to say it's fantastic to see such great football from other Midwest clubs. I favored Cinci in this one, really thought they would take it. But Columbus just wouldn't be denied. I hope they do the same against LAFC.
Glory to Columbus! The First team in MLS, the original Black and Gold! Though the ticket release for the Cup Final has been a disaster, I am determined to get one at a fair price and support my Crew!
Yeah, someone in the MLS front office needs to get fired for that. It's not just a disappointment to the Crew supporters, but an embarassment to the whole league. This is supposed to be the showcase game of the year and the one the international viewers would turn on and watch, and with the big Apple contract and all the attention from Messi there will be no Nordecke for the game. No supporters section. No Tifo. No drummers. None of the usual things that would be at a big Crew game. The optics of that are going to be terrible.
Crew fan here who was at the game in our away supporters section. Rollercoaster of emotions is correct. And watching FCC fans leaving was “chefs kiss” the dejection could be felt from the rafters.
This match had so much going on that you can't tell from the highlights. 1) Columbus led the league in positive goal differential in the first half of play. Cincinatti lead the league in positive goal differential in the second half of play. Everyone expect this match to be Columbus getting an early lead and then trying to hang on in the second half. So when Columbus went down early, a lot of people expected that to be already game over. 2) For two games in a row, Nancy had benched the more technical more experienced Gressel in favor of Farsi because of the pace he can bring. And Nancy was rewarded by the two best games of Farsi's career. But the third game, Farsi crashed back to earth. He was by far the weakest man on the field and he cost Columbus the first goal with characteristic sloppy play. So the question was, when Gressel comes back on, can he be a difference maker? 3) Nancy's biggest weakness as a coach is that he waits on late subs and doesn't necessarily manage the game well. Columbus often collapses late because the legs wear out. 4) Columbus is the best home team in the league. But they are one of the the worst road teams. So losing big time away wasn't anything unexpected. 5) When Columbus went down 2-0, EVERYONE thought the game was over. No MLS team in the history of the playoffs has ever come from 2 goals down away. It had never been done. Even the children of Nancy, the Columbus head coach, were bawling and crying like the match had been lost. 6) All the refereeing decisions had gone against Columbus. Rossi got pulled down in the box - no foul. Vasquez takes a dive off no contact, and the referee awards both a yellow card and a free kick that leads to the second goal. 7) By the sixtieth minute, Cincy was attacking the Columbus goal at will. They had like six chances in a row - two of which made it into the net and were called back (handball and foul). Everyone expected Cincy to go up 3-0. The game was over. The referees were against us. The stadium was against us. The odds were against us. Everyone in Ohio gave up on Columbus except for the players on the field. I have friends who had given up on the game and gone to drink away their sorrows and who missed the comeback because they thought we were doomed after that goal that was called back for the handball. Some Cincy fans left the stadium in the 63rd minute because they thought Columbus was done. 8) Remember I said Nancy's weakness is he never subs. Well, sometimes your weakness becomes your strength. Cincinatti just gassed out. They ran out of legs. Columbus was used to going the full 90 with the starting lineup. When Columbus sub in, Cincinatti was already gassed. The MVP of this match is the Columbus fitness coach. Columbus ran Cincinatti off their feet. By the third goal we were effectively up by 5 players. Three were unable to run and walked limping toward the play. Two couldn't even walk - they just stared at the play with their hands on their knees. 9) Gressel was immediate game changer. The whole game we couldn't get a clear look at the goal because Cincy had 5 players bunkered into the middle. Gressel unlocked the Cincy defense, and it was a rout from then on. Ramirez was an immediate game changer. He made the penetration that led to the own goal. He made the clever pass that unlocked the defense on the second goal. He finished the third goal. 10) Both teams were crying after the game. The losers were weeping with grief. The Crew was weeping with joy. The whole field was filled with manly tears and hugs.
I didn't think we lost until I thought Boupendza scored a 3rd goal. We were playing too well and 2-0 is a dangerous score if you can score next to think it was over at halftime. Even away from home.
@@jeffcook2570 It wasn't just that we were down 2-0. It's that we were being outplayed in the first 15 minutes of the first half, and we were away, and the referee seemed to be against us, and both Cucho and Rossi were having bad nights up to that point with Cucho playing too try hard and Rossi seemingly gassed. And if you recall, it wasn't just the handball goal that was called back. They put one in the net off a set piece a few minutes after that. And they had like 4 offsides called back. And Shulte had to make 2 saves. For a while there around the 60th minute before our subs, we were just getting bombed. Rossi was transformed after that first goal. I think he had given up, but he found incredible energy once we were back in it.
Cucho Hernandez is class. That being said, when the Boupendza goals was disallowed that woke Columbus up. They would have been down 3-0, it would have been over, they thought they had lost, instinct to not lose kicked in. Amazing game, thanks for the video, love seeing football fans from around the globe watch the MLS.
The daylight between the two teams in the end came down to fitness. By the second 15 in extra time, multiple Cinci players were cramping and having a hard time even moving, but they were out of subs. Crew looked more fresh and more fit, which could be because they had to play the third game during the first round vs. Atlanta, while Cinci swept their series in two games; and then Crew played 120 minutes last weekend in the quarterfinal game vs. Orlando, while Cinci won their quarterfinal game in regulation. The game was INCREDIBLY even otherwise. Crew dominated possession and the game plan, while Cinci had arguably the better quality chances on goal. I've been a Crew supporter for decades, and I can say honestly this will be a defining match that goes down in club history books. Unbelievable match with so much on the line. Instant classic.
@@jeffcook2570 That was on the coach. Any coach has as part of his job pulling players out of a game that they can no longer compete in. The coach new the player was in trouble but he let the player make the decision. Players, especially attacking players, are not going to tell you when they have to come off. They are all going to say that they keep playing because they are competitors. You have to make that call as a coach, and he made the wrong one. But it wasn't just Acosta. The whole Cincy team just lost their legs, and I have to think that too is on the coach. Maybe don't try to geggenpress the best passing team in the league for 90 minutes if that's not normally how you play.
This was such an exhilarating game. There’s only one winner to this game will be last words that will live on forever. Lol. I think that’s what we all thought in the 70th minute when it was 2-0 Cincinnati.
Columbus fan here: I thought it was over after the 2nd Cincy goal, which shouldn't have happened after a foul for a guy tripping over himself. But this rivalry was summed up perfectly by this game, and I'm absolutely stoked to host the Cup Final for the 2nd time in 4 years
FIRST, i clicked as soon as i saw the notification, your my fav football youtuber and im a huge crew fan, i started tearing up when we scored the 2nd goal!
these highlights really left out a lot of context lol. like the “foul” that led to Cincy’s second goal was bc the guy tripped on his own feet lmao 🙄 And they don’t really show how truly threatening the Crew’s attack was the entire 120. Still an absolute match for the ages though. Gonna be telling my kids about this one lol
These highlights really did not convey the almost complete dominance by Columbus. Cincy played well, but they just could match the Crew's intensity. Almost every stat was in Columbus's favor. 87% passing accuracy on over 700 passes and a 58 to 16 edge on touches inside the opponent's 18.
Are you going to be doing a watch along for Columbus crew versus LAFC mls cup final? It’s Saturday, December 9 at 9 PM UK time. It’s streaming free on Apple TV. It’s not behind the pay wall.
This was my first away game as a Crew fan. The atmosphere was insane. Tons of Crew fans throughout the stadium. Both fans kept trying to drown eachother's chants. Never seen anything like it in USA
Great game. Big things I saw, cinci subbed defensively. And Columbus subbed offensively. And it showed. And in extra time Columbus was more conditioned and just wanted it more.
Listen man if you make it to the US next year and want to come to a Columbus Crew game Im a season ticket holder and i got a ticket with your name on it.
Manuel Neuer really made dudes think they can make saves with their feet instead of diving. No way Columbus goes down early with a proper save with your hand stretched out!!! They all wanna be like him, but I hope they know (nvm hope he tries to use his feet in the final) they are GKs, and won't get a red like Suarez in 2010 for using a hand 🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️
I am a Sounders fan but was rooting for Cincinnati here. Cincinnati lost this game simply because their in-form defender Matt Maizga was suspended and the coach mainly play a 3-4-3 or 3-4-3 with 3 defenders in the back with Miazga being the center back and was the MLS Defender of the Year. Without him ,and with the coach now having to put 4 in the backline, basically a change in the formation and putting players who are on the bench was a huge risk and something Pat Noonan did not expect, this having to make changes. This was most likely the cases why Cincinnati lost, despite having the home field advantage, and honestly wish they won all the way since it contrasted to when Cincinnati played in 2019, 2020, and 2021 and were so terribly bad. This year they were on fire! It is surprisingly, but at the same time not really to see all of the best hot teams in the league St Louis SC, Fc Cincinnati, Seattle Sounders, and to a lesser extent, Inter Miami, out of the playoffs. Hope you enjoyed the match in this Premier League-style stadium because FC Cincinnati home is a blast!
