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How Columbus Crew nearly dropped 5-goal advantage vs Atlanta United: Takeaways
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- How Columbus Crew nearly dropped 5-goal advantage vs Atlanta United: Takeaways
The Crew took and almost gave up their biggest advantage this season, narrowly defeating Atlanta United 5-4 on Sept. 13 despite conceding four unanswered goals.
Forward Diego Rossi was at the center of the Crew's offensive dominance in the first half, recording a hat trick by the 39-minute mark to pull Columbus ahead 5-0.
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Replay: Diego Rossi records hat trick, Columbus Crew survive Atlanta United's comeback
Atlanta made the first dent in the lead during first-half stoppage time when Crew defender Yevhen Cheberko was charged with a foul inside his team's box, which allowed Atlanta midfielder Miguel Almiron to score on a penalty kick.
The Crew's defense continued to collapse during the second half, allowing Atlanta to score two goals in less than four minutes after returning from halftime.
Atlanta came within one goal of tying the game when forward Jamal Thiare scored in the 89th minute, but ran out of time to complete the comeback.
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"They could have won, to be honest with you," Crew coach Wilfried Nancy said. "For me, this is not a failure. This is good for us because this is something we have never seen before, to be 5-1 and to struggle and to almost lose the game. This is something that we want to figure out. At the same time, this is football. It could have been an easy game."
Crew forward Wessam Abou Ali shakes his finger at the referee in the game against Atlanta on Sept. 13.
The Crew struggled to get the offense flowing in the second half, taking just two shots compared to Atlanta's 10.
The victory was crucial for the Crew, as it marked their first in MLS regular-season play since July 19 and boosted them back into the top five in the Eastern Conference standings.
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However, the Crew walked out of Mercedes-Benz Stadium knowing the victory was tainted.
"It was a weird, difficult feeling," Crew striker Wessam Abou Ali said. "You're trying to be happy, because it's a very, very important three points. We can all see that. And we had such an amazing first half. … And then in the 90th minute, you have this devastating feeling of like you lost 4-0."
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Columbus Crew defense continues to collapse in short stretches
On multiple occasions, the Crew's defense has seen one conceded goal quickly become two in a matter of five minutes or less. The Crew outlasted the conceded goals in this matchup, but these stretches in other games has caused three of their six regular-season losses.
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Against Atlanta, the two goals Columbus allowed in four minutes started after the second-half kickoff. Off a cross pass, defender Pedro Amador scored on a header.
Thiare followed by scoring while at a two-on-one disadvantage against goalkeeper Patrick Schulte and Cheberko.
"We started to defend to stop the play on top of it," Nancy said. "We didn't do it and we got punished. Simple as that."
Crew defender Yevhen Cheberko (left) battles for the ball against Atlanta forward Jamal Thiare on Sept. 13.
Of the nine teams sitting in MLS playoff positions, the Crew have the second-smallest goal differential of five. Only the Chicago Fire , who occupy the ninth spot in the standings, have a smaller goal differential of one.
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Columbus Crew hold onto advantage by scoring season-high number of goals within first half
The Crew were able to survive Atlanta's second-half surge because of the season-high scoring effort they had in the first half.
Rossi started the scoring with two goals in the first 20 minutes.
Before recording an assist on Rossi's third goal, Abou Ali netted his first since joining the Crew in August. Abou Ali's goal came off a pass from forward Daniel Gazdag , who finished the night with two assists.
Crew forward Diego Rossi (left) and midfielder Daniel Gazdag celebrate a goal against Atlanta on Sept. 13.
When midfielder Andres Herrera scored in the 30th minute, it solidified the club record for the fastest the Crew have recorded four goals.
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"I'm not surprised," Nancy said. "This is something that we did in the past but we didn't score, and in this situation, we scored. This is our offense with a lot of humility. We had the opportunity to kill the game a few times, but we didn't do it. At this time, it worked."
Diego Rossi scores first hat trick with Columbus Crew
Rossi had hat tricks in MLS during his time with Los Angeles FC in 2019 and 2020, but this was his first in over two seasons with the Crew.
This season, Rossi has proven to be the most consistent offensive presence on the field for the Crew, recording a team-best 16 goals across 28 regular-season games.
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Three minutes after scoring his third goal, Rossi was taken out of the lineup due to discomfort in his right hamstring. Once Rossi needed medical attention, Nancy felt it was the right moment to pull him and will be evaluating his status for the upcoming game mid-next week.
The Crew kickoff against New York City at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 17 at Yankee Stadium.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Crew escapes Atlanta United's comeback to record road win
