The Columbus Crew avenged the team’s loss to Nashville SC earlier in the season on Saturday night, earning a 2-0 win at Lower.com Field. The game marked the fourth straight win at home for the Black & Gold and extended the team’s unbeaten run to five matches.

Striker Christian Ramirez opened the scoring for Columbus early in the first half. Despite controlling much of the match, a second goal didn’t come until substitute Max Arfsten forced a Nashville own goal in second half stoppage time. The win puts the Crew in fifth place in the Eastern Conference during the unbeaten stretch.

Those who pay attention to tactics might have noticed the Black & Gold tried some new shapes and tactical setups due to the personnel available for this game and it paid off. Let’s dive into those tactical decisions.

A different midfield setup

Due to Columbus midfielder Aidan Morris being called up for international duty with the United States Men’s National Team for the Gold Cup, the Crew was forced to go with a different midfield trio than what head coach Wilfried Nancy has preferred for much of the season. Nancy decided to insert attacking midfielder Alexandru Matan for Morris, which isn’t quite a like-for-like switch and changed the shape of the midfield.

Lucas Zelarayan played in his typical No. 10 with Matan slightly deeper and Darlington Nagbe anchoring the midfield. Because Matan isn’t a true central midfielder, he was tasked with pushing a bit higher and carrying the ball into the attacking third. Zelarayan too contributed in this way, dropping deeper at times, especially after the Crew took the lead.

Playing as the lone No. 6 meant Nagbe was afforded more space and freedom to operate in the deeper midfielder. He roamed from side to side and found gaps to help the Blackk & Gold build out of the back. On the defensive side though, he was not left to fend for himself. Matan helped defend in transition to make up for the loss of a Morris. Zelarayan was not tasked with as much defensive work, but Matan did his due diligence to help Nagbe when Nashville was on the ball.

On the offensive side, both Matan and Zelarayan dropped to help Columbus build out of the back. Because Nagbe didn’t have another midfielder alongside him to combine with and skirt around the pressing attackers, he needed help from Matan and Zelarayan.

Additionally, the outside center backs had different duties when the Crew had possession. Both Malte Amundsen and Sean Zawadzki stepped up to form a cupped backline so that they could be alongside Nagbe to help build and possess.

Building out of the back without using the wing backs

The Black & Gold’s wing backs have been utilized in a number of different ways throughout this first half of the season, but on Saturday it was all about how they were not used. The object of Columbus’ attack was typically to break lines, get the ball out wide, create numerical advantages and then pick out Cucho Hernandez, Ramirez or Zelarayan inside for an open shot. That philosophy changed a bit against Nashville.

While the Crew’s wing backs usually help the team build out of the back, this was not the case on Saturday night. Instead, the wing backs stayed higher up the pitch like true wingers and vacated that space for the midfielders to drop in and receive the ball. Once the buildup reached Nashville’s defensive half, the wing backs operated as normal, overlapping, possessing and crossing the ball. The only thing that was out of the ordinary was that they were not being involved in the buildup play.

This could have been done for a host of reasons. Nancy knew that Nashville was stout defensively and likely wanted to attack at a different angle or throw a wrinkle the opponent wouldn’t be ready for. He also trusts his midfielders with breaking the lines, which they often do better than the wide player.

Another big reason could be the absence of Morris. If he was alongside Nagbe and Zelarayan was the lone attacking midfielder, the open spaces in attack would be on the sides. Playing with Matan more advanced than Morris typically is, the open space was inside in the channels, rather than out wide with the wing backs.

Regardless of the reasons, this new strategy of buildup worked well for Columbus who was on the front foot early on in the match and eventually got the coveted opening goal against a tough Nashville side.

How the Crew pierced through Nashville’s tough defense

Nashville has one of the most recognizable and effective tactical setups in all of Major League Soccer. The team thrives on being defensively sound and then hitting on the counter attack with former MLS MVP Hany Mukhtar and other potent attacking options.

One of the difficulties the Black & Gold had in recent seasons is breaking through that tough defensive tactical setup. On Saturday though, fans got a glimpse of Nashville’s weakness.

The Columbus attackers often made the same type of runs, a check and go, and got in behind over and over again. The attacker checked to the ball and drew the marking defender out, and then turned and ran into the vacated space as soon as the defender took the bait.

The Crew used this type of run multiple times, forcing Nashville to either continue getting burned or adjust the tactical setup. Although it sounds simple to change, it isn’t.

The entire reason Nashville defenders were drawn out is that they didn’t want the duo of Hernandez and Zelarayan to receive the ball in space to shoot from distance. If the defenders don’t step out and press, that dangerous duo punishes them.

This is the threat the Columbus attack poses. The Crew has the speed and finishing ability to get in behind, but also the technical ability to score goals from outside the penalty box, and even outside the attacking half.

Nashville eventually did adjust and pulled the midfielders deeper so that the defenders didn’t have to jump forward so much, and they still had pressure on the ball. Even so, the Black & Gold still created good chances and ended up taking all three points.