The Columbus Crew put on a youth clinic to demolish Atlanta United 6-1 at Lower.com Field last weekend. Both teams missed key players to international call-up and injuries, yet the Crew handled the situation better and three points and six goals was the result.

For this week’s home match against Real Salt Lake, Columbus should have goalkeeper Eloy Room, center back Milos Degenek and midfielder Lucas Zelarayan available for selection after spending time with their respective national teams. Head coach Wilfried Nancy will have decisions to make after the young players performed so well.

The returning international players will shore up a few absences but there are still some key players out injured. Center back Josh Williams is still dealing with an ankle injury and winger Luis Diaz is still sidelined with a back injury. Midfielder Kevin Molino will be out for a month and a half or two after knee surgery. The biggest injury absence is Designated Player striker Cucho Hernandez, who is out for a couple of more weeks with a knee injury as well.

With all that in mind, let’s take a look at how we think Nancy will line up his Black & Gold side against Salt Lake.

While Patrick Schulte played well in goal last week, Room’s return means he is back as the Crew’s starting goalkeeper. Schulte continues to show positive signs, including coming off his line and playing with his feet, but this job remains Room’s.

Center back Philip Quinton played his best match yet with the Black & Gold last week. His headed goal aside, Quinton had good defensive performance, tracking back and dispossessing attackers, organizing the defense and limiting Schulte’s workload. Nancy will keep Quinton in the middle of the center backs and push Degenek outside to left center back. Degenek’s athleticism should allow him to thrive in this position. Quinton played as the central center back for Crew 2 the majority of last year, so this is a familiar spot for him. Steven Moreira has shown that he remains a game changer even in a more withdrawn position and stays at the right center back position. 

Mohamed Farsi and Will Sands have been first choice for Nancy when healthy and both wing backs earned assists against Atlanta. They will start again against RSL. Columbus should see the majority of possession against a struggling RSL side and if the Crew has difficulty breaking down the defense, Jimmy Medranda will be a good option off the bench for Nancy.

Central midfielders Aidan Morris and Darlington Nagbe have been the workhorses for the Black & Gold in possession. Morris already has a goal and an assist, all while leading the league in tackles won and completing 93 percent of his passes. Nagbe leads the team with six key passes and both midfielders are at top of Nancy’s team sheet.

With the explosion of offense, Nancy’s job to field the best attackers becomes a little more difficult, but in a good way. Midfielder Alexandru Matan leads the team with four assists and must find a place on the field. Zelarayan is the championship-winning creator who can score world class goals. The Armenian international will slot into the starting lineup any match he is available. This leaves only one attacking spot open, and Christian Ramirez gets that starting spot. Jacen Russell-Rowe is a talented young attacker that will see the field in this match from the substitutes’ bench. In this formation, Zelarayan will move up into a free-roaming attacker, much like Russell-Rowe last match with Matan as the sole man as the No. 10.