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Columbus Crew
Major League Soccer | Gameweek 5
May 8, 2021 at 6.30pm UK
Columbus Crew Stadium
DC United

Columbus Crew
3 - 1
DC United

Zelarayan (20'), Brillant (63' og.), Alfaro (83' og.)
Afful (29'), Williams (30'), Wright-Phillips (36'), Francis (58')
FT(HT: 1-0)
Kamara (82')
Rodrigo Asad (42')

Preview: Columbus Crew vs. DC United - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's Major League Soccer clash between Columbus Crew and DC United, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

The first-ever MLS Cup champions will take on the most recent winners on Saturday from Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus.

DC United are looking to rebound after a 4-1 defeat to San Jose last Saturday, a second consecutive loss, while the Columbus Crew are hoping to earn three points for the first time this season.


Match preview

Columbus Crew head coach Caleb Porter reacts against the Seattle Sounders in the second half during the 2020 MLS Cup Final at MAPFRE Stadium in December 2020© Reuters

It seems the Crew are still suffering from a championship hangover, having drawn their opening two games in the regular season, failing to score each time.

For Columbus, this is their worst opening to a regular season since 2017, but luckily for Caleb Porter and his team, there are still plenty of games to be played.

The defending champions have been at their best when playing at home, winning nine of their 10 games in 2020 and hitting double digits in home wins in 2017 and 2018.

They have struggled to beat DC United in the regular season, losing their last three encounters against them by a 1-0 score.

Last season they gave up a mere 21 goals, which was second only to Philadelphia, and so far in the early stages of 2021 they have been just as solid defensively, keeping four clean sheets in their last six games in all competitions.

DC United celebrate their second goal in the first half against the Montreal Impact at Audi Field in November 2020© Reuters

After a solid start to his managerial career in the American capital, things have gone downhill for Hernan Losada.

His side came back to beat New York FC 2-1 in their opening fixture but have lost their last two, including a 4-1 defeat to the San Jose Earthquakes the previous time out.

So far in 2021, despite having a new coach, the Black and Red have continued a familiar trend from 2020, conceding the opening goal in their first three matches.

In their previous campaign, DC gave up the opening goal 15 times, which could explain why they finished with the third worst record in the MLS regular season.

The franchise that won three of the first four MLS Cup titles took a big step backwards last year, failing to make the playoffs for the first time since 2017.

Columbus Crew Major League Soccer form:
  • D
  • D

Columbus Crew form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • D
  • D
  • D
  • L

DC United Major League Soccer form:
  • W
  • L
  • L



Team News

Columbus Crew players celebrate on stage with the MLS Cup championship trophy after defeating the Seattle Sounders in the 2020 MLS Cup Final at MAPFRE Stadium in December 2020© Reuters

The Crew have been hit by the injury bug early on this season as Kevin Molino is out with a left hamstring problem, while Aidan Morris and Marlon Hairston have left knee injuries, and Perry Kitchen has a right thigh problem.

Centre-back Jonathan Mensah has a muscular issue, while newcomer Liam Fraser hopes to make his debut this weekend after being loaned for the rest of the season from Toronto FC.

Their leading goalscorer from 2020, Gyasi Zardes could miss the game with a shoulder injury.

Hernan Losada will have several injuries to deal with himself, as Steve Birnbaum is still recovering from ankle surgery, while they could be without Yordy Reyna, Ola Kamara, Griffin Yow and Kevin Paredes, who all have unknown injuries.

DC are hoping Julian Gressel and Yamil Rodrigo Asad can create more scoring opportunities for a team that went goalless seven times in the 2020 regular season campaign.

Columbus Crew possible starting lineup:
Room; Francis, Keita, Williams, Afful; Artur, Parente; Santos, Zelarayan, Espinoza; Wright-Phillips

DC United possible starting lineup:
Seitz; Alfaro, Brillant, Hines-Ike; Mora, Moreno, Nyeman, Gressel; Flores, Asad; Sorga


SM words green background

We say: Columbus Crew 1-2 DC United

DC United have had the Crew's number over the past couple of seasons and will be in a foul mood after being embarrassed a week ago by the San Jose Earthquakes.

Columbus were eliminated in the Champions League quarter-finals, losing 3-0 to Monterrey, and have only a few days to recover.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 3.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 3.5:data



ID:446310:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect9473:
Written by
Joel Lefevre

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Columbus Crew win with a probability of 55.55%. A draw had a probability of 23.5% and a win for DC United had a probability of 21%.

The most likely scoreline for a Columbus Crew win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.33%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (9.96%) and 2-1 (9.8%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.15%), while for a DC United win it was 0-1 (6.35%). The actual scoreline of 3-1 was predicted with a 5.7% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Columbus Crew would win this match.


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Eastern Conference

TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Inter MiamiInter Miami34228479493074
2Columbus Crew34199672403266
3FC CincinnatiCincinnati341851158481059
4Orlando City34157125950952
5Charlotte FCCharlotte FC34149114637951
6New York City FCNY City34148125449550
7New York Red BullsNY Red Bulls34111495550547
8CF MontrealMontreal341110134864-1643
9Atlanta UnitedAtlanta341010144649-340
10DC United341010145270-1840
11Philadelphia UnionPhiladelphia34910156255737
12Toronto34114194061-2137
13Nashville SCNashville3499163854-1636
14New England RevolutionNew England3494213774-3731
15Chicago Fire3479184062-2230

Western Conference

TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Los Angeles FCLos Angeles34197863432064
2Los Angeles GalaxyLA Galaxy34197869501964
3Real Salt LakeSalt Lake341611765481759
4Seattle SoundersSeattle34169951351657
5Houston DynamoHouston34159104739854
6Minnesota UnitedMinnesota Utd34157125849952
7Colorado RapidsColorado34155146160150
8Portland TimbersPortland341211116556947
9Vancouver WhitecapsVancouver34138135249347
10Austin FCAustin34119143948-942
11Dallas34118155456-241
12St Louis City34813135063-1337
13Sporting Kansas CityKansas3487195166-1531
14San Jose EarthquakesEarthquakes3463254178-3721


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