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Columbus Crew 1-0 Chivas USA: Crew Leave it Late Again
Schelotto penalty gives the Crew all three points.
May 15, 2010 10:17:00 PM
By Nick Rosano
A late penalty from Guillermo Barros Schelotto allowed the Crew to steal a win and maintain their perfect record at home. Although Sacha Kljestan played well for the visitors, he and the Chivas offense were not able to find a way through and go home empty handed after a physical contest.
First Half
It was Chivas USA that started out the brighter of the two sides, as they looked to capitalize on some sloppy play from the Columbus defense. Michael Lahoud gave the home side something to think about with some mazy runs from the midfield, but the end product was not there, with too few Chivas men in the box to really force a goalscoring chance.
Columbus started to look a bit more confident after 15 minutes, with Steven Lenhart diving to get onto a cross from Eddie Gaven, but only making minimal contact. Soon after, Jeff Gontarek issued the first booking of the match, to Michael Umaña after a reckless challenge on Schelotto. Just as the Crew looked like they were recovering, a defensive miscue forced Will Hesmer to race out of his box for an aerial challenge with Justin Braun, who got the better of the Crew netminder, but his header was weak and rolled past the near post.
The game started to become more physical midway through the half, with challenges flying in from both sides, but Gontarek chose not to issue any more cards. There was controversy on 25 minutes, when Umaña raised his arm straight above his head to stop the ball, and although the Crew players pleaded with the referee to issue the Costa Rican a second booking, Gontarek chose not to send him off.
Chivas found themselves with the better of possession in the first half, as the Crew midfield wasn’t clicking, forcing the home side to resort to more long balls over the top and look for the aerial presence of Lenhart. However, the tandem of Umaña and Darío Delgado showed great understanding to keep the Crew attack at bay. Jonathan Bornstein and Sacha Kljestan both fired over for Chivas while Eddie Gaven’s final ball was poor after being set up well by Schelotto on a rare foray into the Chivas half.
Chivas failed to make any of their late set piece opportunities pay and the first 45 minutes ended without incident, characterized more by physical play than cohesive passing.
Second Half
Chivas USA started out the second half in much the same way as the first, with their solid passing proving too much for the Crew midfielders, who were struggling to win the ball back, not helped by some sloppy distribution from the defense. Despite this, Robbie Rogers was almost able to capitalize on a mistake on the flank from Delgado, but the defender was able to recover well and force a clearance.
With Chivas dominating possession, Hesmer had to be alert as Bornstein played a weighted ball over the top to Jesús Padilla, forcing the Columbus netminder to rush out off his line and collect the ball. Soon after, the physical nature of the game reasserted itself and Frankie Hejduk was the second into Gontarek’s book for a rough challenge on Padilla.
Kljestan and Braun were linking up very nicely, causing the Crew defense fits and creating two gilt-edged opportunities for the visitors just before the hour mark. First, Kljestan and Braun exchanged passes down the left flank, and Kljestan cut and cross for an open Bornstein, but the left-back did not get the power he wanted, allowing Gino Padula to clear off the line.
Immediately after that, Kljestan was at it again, threading the ball through to Lahoud, whose ball across found Blair Gavin, but not without Hesmer getting a piece of it. Hesmer’s move threw off Gavin, but Padula had to be aware once again to head off the line for the second time in two minutes. Soon after though, the Argentine left back was removed for Danny O’Rourke in an effort to stem the Chivas attack.
Chivas didn’t let up as they looked to put a stain on Columbus’ impeccable home record, and Padilla nearly did just that, chesting down a great ball from the right and turning Chad Marshall inside out, but once again Hesmer was quick off his line to collect the ball.
The Crew started to look better in the last 20 minutes, and Marshall was able to head the ball across goal, but Gaven could not do enough to keep possession on the byline. With the offense still struggling, Robert Warzycha opted to swap Steven Lenhart for Jason Garey in order to spark some life into the Crew.
Braun and Kljestan continued to link up well, with Chad Marshall getting in the way to block what could have been a fine goal while Lahoud then found Kljestan, who fired just wide of Hesmer’s far post in an effort to break the deadlock. With the game entering the final 10 minutes, Robert Warzycha made his final roll of the dice, inserting Emmanuel Ekpo for the largely ineffective Gaven, while Marcelo Saragosa replaced Lahoud after a tough challenge on the youngster.
Ekpo immediately threatened the Chivas defense with his tight ball control and mazy runs, and on 89 minutes he won a free kick about 40 yards from Thornton’s goal. Schelotto stepped up to curl the ball in, and Marshall was clearly hauled down by Braun while attempting the header, leaving Gontarek no choice but to award a penalty.
Schelotto stepped up and drove the ball to Thornton’s right, and although the keeper was able to get his fingers on it, the shot was simply too powerful and Columbus once again grabbed a late winner, this time in a game where they had been second best for most of the contest.
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First Half
It was Chivas USA that started out the brighter of the two sides, as they looked to capitalize on some sloppy play from the Columbus defense. Michael Lahoud gave the home side something to think about with some mazy runs from the midfield, but the end product was not there, with too few Chivas men in the box to really force a goalscoring chance.
Columbus started to look a bit more confident after 15 minutes, with Steven Lenhart diving to get onto a cross from Eddie Gaven, but only making minimal contact. Soon after, Jeff Gontarek issued the first booking of the match, to Michael Umaña after a reckless challenge on Schelotto. Just as the Crew looked like they were recovering, a defensive miscue forced Will Hesmer to race out of his box for an aerial challenge with Justin Braun, who got the better of the Crew netminder, but his header was weak and rolled past the near post.
The game started to become more physical midway through the half, with challenges flying in from both sides, but Gontarek chose not to issue any more cards. There was controversy on 25 minutes, when Umaña raised his arm straight above his head to stop the ball, and although the Crew players pleaded with the referee to issue the Costa Rican a second booking, Gontarek chose not to send him off.
Chivas found themselves with the better of possession in the first half, as the Crew midfield wasn’t clicking, forcing the home side to resort to more long balls over the top and look for the aerial presence of Lenhart. However, the tandem of Umaña and Darío Delgado showed great understanding to keep the Crew attack at bay. Jonathan Bornstein and Sacha Kljestan both fired over for Chivas while Eddie Gaven’s final ball was poor after being set up well by Schelotto on a rare foray into the Chivas half.
Chivas failed to make any of their late set piece opportunities pay and the first 45 minutes ended without incident, characterized more by physical play than cohesive passing.
Second Half
Chivas USA started out the second half in much the same way as the first, with their solid passing proving too much for the Crew midfielders, who were struggling to win the ball back, not helped by some sloppy distribution from the defense. Despite this, Robbie Rogers was almost able to capitalize on a mistake on the flank from Delgado, but the defender was able to recover well and force a clearance.
With Chivas dominating possession, Hesmer had to be alert as Bornstein played a weighted ball over the top to Jesús Padilla, forcing the Columbus netminder to rush out off his line and collect the ball. Soon after, the physical nature of the game reasserted itself and Frankie Hejduk was the second into Gontarek’s book for a rough challenge on Padilla.
Kljestan and Braun were linking up very nicely, causing the Crew defense fits and creating two gilt-edged opportunities for the visitors just before the hour mark. First, Kljestan and Braun exchanged passes down the left flank, and Kljestan cut and cross for an open Bornstein, but the left-back did not get the power he wanted, allowing Gino Padula to clear off the line.
Immediately after that, Kljestan was at it again, threading the ball through to Lahoud, whose ball across found Blair Gavin, but not without Hesmer getting a piece of it. Hesmer’s move threw off Gavin, but Padula had to be aware once again to head off the line for the second time in two minutes. Soon after though, the Argentine left back was removed for Danny O’Rourke in an effort to stem the Chivas attack.
Chivas didn’t let up as they looked to put a stain on Columbus’ impeccable home record, and Padilla nearly did just that, chesting down a great ball from the right and turning Chad Marshall inside out, but once again Hesmer was quick off his line to collect the ball.
The Crew started to look better in the last 20 minutes, and Marshall was able to head the ball across goal, but Gaven could not do enough to keep possession on the byline. With the offense still struggling, Robert Warzycha opted to swap Steven Lenhart for Jason Garey in order to spark some life into the Crew.
Braun and Kljestan continued to link up well, with Chad Marshall getting in the way to block what could have been a fine goal while Lahoud then found Kljestan, who fired just wide of Hesmer’s far post in an effort to break the deadlock. With the game entering the final 10 minutes, Robert Warzycha made his final roll of the dice, inserting Emmanuel Ekpo for the largely ineffective Gaven, while Marcelo Saragosa replaced Lahoud after a tough challenge on the youngster.
Ekpo immediately threatened the Chivas defense with his tight ball control and mazy runs, and on 89 minutes he won a free kick about 40 yards from Thornton’s goal. Schelotto stepped up to curl the ball in, and Marshall was clearly hauled down by Braun while attempting the header, leaving Gontarek no choice but to award a penalty.
Schelotto stepped up and drove the ball to Thornton’s right, and although the keeper was able to get his fingers on it, the shot was simply too powerful and Columbus once again grabbed a late winner, this time in a game where they had been second best for most of the contest.
For more on Major League Soccer, visit Goal.com's MLS page and join Goal.com USA's Facebook fan page!
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