Manneh creating a chance that was saved by Elliott (Photo courtesy of Charlotte Thomas)
The key to the Union’s victory on Wednesday didn’t come down to a a big tactical change-up from Coach Jim Curtin, nor did it come from a lapse from Coach Gregg Berhalter. The Union’s 3-0 victory came down mostly to the two red cards given to Jonathan Mensah and Lalas Abubakar. However, referee Ismail Elfath got both calls absolutely right. Mensah took down CJ Sapong in a 1v1 situation with keeper Zack Steffen, and Abubakar put his hands to Ilsinho’s face after a quite deliberate shoulder-check from Ilsinho. While Columbus had set up quite well to take the game to the Union, the Crew SC were down 1-0 before the first red card. Had the red card not been issued, the game likely would have been end-to-end for 90 minutes. As it was, Columbus looked a real threat with just 10 men, and even still with 9. Here are some keys to that game.
Advantage in the wide areas:
Columbus took the game to Philly predominantly in the wide areas and in the channels. With the 3-4-2-1, Columbus had 3 vs. 2’s in most areas of the pitch. The mismatches started in the back with the Union’s press. The three center-backs for Columbus were comfortable with possession, especially with Zack Steffen. CJ Sapong and the two Union wingers were mostly responsible for pressing the 3 center-backs for Columbus. Meanwhile, The Columbus wing-backs pushed forward providing an outlet if the center-backs ever got in trouble. The Union backline mostly marked the three forwards for Columbus, and the Union center-midfielders took responsibility for Wil Trapp and Artur for Columbus. The result was 2 wing-backs that were almost entirely unmarked.
Once the ball went wide, Union outside-backs Giliano Wijnaldum and Ray Gaddis had a conundrum on their hands, mark Justin Meram and Kektah Manneh, the danger-men for Columbus, which would allow the Columbus wing-backs acres of space to surge forward into the box. Another option was to leave Meram and Manneh, and slide out to the wingbacks. This allowed Meram and Manneh to run the channels, which how Columbus created most of its chances. The last option, the one Curtin opted to employ, was to use Wijnaldum and Gaddis to cut passing-lanes. This ended up being a half-and-half approach, where at some point Gaddis and Wijnaldum had to mark the wing-backs, but if the ball was played too early, the Union defenders could cut out the pass.
How the central players reacted:
Roland Alberg, Haris Medunjanin, and Alejandro Bedoya then had the miscellaneous role of marking Wil Trapp and Artur in the middle, sliding wide to pick up the wing-backs, and drop in to cut off passes to the forwards. Trapp and Artur made the latter two roles incredibly difficult for the Union midfielders throughout the match. Artur took the role of surging forward himself and committing defenders. The Union midfielders couldn’t cut the passing lanes and mark Artur effectively, and the Brazilian midfielder was often the final straw in creating a mismatch in the final 3rd. Meanwhile Wil Trapp remained reserved, spraying passes to the wide areas.
The midfield, offensively, for the Union, created just as many problems for the Crew, however. The 3 vs. 2 wasn’t effective on defense, but on offense the Union could play around the Crew midfield and create 1v1s in the midfield and attacking 3rd. The Union goal was a result of this, and the red card and penalty also came from Columbus over committing players.
The first Union goal came from a cross from Ray Gaddis on the right side. Left wing-back Jukka Raitala attempted to mark Ilsinho, and the press from Columbus left Kekuta Manneh upfield. Gaddis had plenty of space to put in a cross, but it was hesitation from Jonathan Mensah that caused panic in the Columbus box. It then took two great volleys, one overhead and one regular, and the ball was in the back of the net.
The penalty and red card once again came from Columbus committing too many men in the midfield. Medunjanin bypassed the press with a single pass to Ilsinho on the right side of the halfway line. Ilsinho then combined with Roland Alberg and CJ Sapong, breaking past the Columbus backline.
The red cards:
Of course Columbus looked likely to score, and even had a ball cleared off the line. But once the red card came out it never looked like the Union were going to lose. Despite down a player Columbus looked strong, but the second red card took away all hope for the Crew. Perhaps with just one red card, Columbus could have done to the Union what NYCFC did to Chicago, but playing with two men down was just too much to ask, and the game was essentially over by this point.
The argument against both red cards was put forth by coach Gregg Berhalter, but it seems both were warranted. Mensah denied Sapong a clear goal-scoring opportunity in the first half, and head referee Ismail Elfath made no hesitation in brandishing the card.
The second red was also an obvious infraction. Lalas Abubakar put his hands to Ilsinho’s face, a straight red no matter intent or force. We saw a similar call last summer in the Copa America Centennario, where Jermaine Jones got a straight red for simply touching an Ecuadorian players face. This situation was similar, and resulted in a similar call. Coach Berhalter complained that it was solely a matter of acting. He claimed Abubakar has too many fouls called against him, and they are called only because Abubakar is strong. He later bashed Ilsinho for over-acting on the fall. He claimed that acting like Ilsinho did had no place in the game, and sets the wrong example for others.
In the game of soccer nothing is guaranteed. Columbus looked poised to take 3 points on the road, but the Union’s home form had the edge. At 6-3-2 the Union’s home record is in the top half of MLS teams. For both the Crew and the Union it is away games that are holding the two teams back. Both teams have only won 9 points on the road from 10 games. For either team to make a serious playoff push they will have to improve performance on the road. Until that time, Columbus is still in a playoff spot, and has been playing like contenders for that last 6th spot.
Columbus Crew
Philadelphia
