In the most anticipated edition of Ohio’s MLS rivalry, the Columbus Crew made hell real for FC Cincinnati.

The Black & Gold stormed to a 3-0 victory against the Eastern Conference leaders in the club’s return to MLS action after the Leagues Cup. The Crew’s win saw the club climb the Eastern Conference table while FC Cincinnati remained in first place with an eight-point cushion on the top spot. 

Columbus midfielder Aidan Morris opened the scoring with a bang; a world-class shot fitting for the occasion. Wing Yaw Yeboah played a pass from the left side of the 18-yard box to Morris who received it with his right foot at the edge of the penalty box. Morris struck the ball on the half-volley, rifling it into the upper right corner past FC Cincinnati goalkeeper Roman Celentano. 

In the 23rd minute, Crew forward Cucho Hernandez doubled the Black & Gold’s lead from the penalty spot, slotting the ball in the bottom right corner as Celentano dove the other direction. The penalty was awarded due to a handball by FC Cincinnati wing-back Alvaro Barreal in the build-up of a Black & Gold attack. 

Just one minute later, center back Sean Zawadzki sprang into action to prevent an almost certain Cincinnati goal. The center back slid to clear a Cincinnati shot off the goal line and followed it with a defiant second clearance to diminish the threat of another shot on goal. 

An FC Cincinnati attack forced a diving save from Columbus goalkeeper Patrick Schulte in the 41st minute. FC Cincinnati forward Aaron Boupendza danced around two Crew defenders before getting a shot off, giving Schulte a real test to close out the first half. 

The Black & Gold’s newest addition, Diego Rossi, nearly found himself on the scoresheet instantly on his Crew debut after coming into the match in the second half. In the 59th minute, Rossi received the ball at the edge of the 18-yard box from Darlington Nagbe and hit a shot across the goal with his left foot, forcing a save from Celentano, who pushed the ball out for a corner kick. 

Hernandez was an ever-present threat to FC Cincinnati’s goal in the second half, recording three shots on target in the 68th, 72nd and 82nd minute. Despite leading the game by two goals Hernadez and his attacking trio consisting of Christian Ramirez and Rossi kept the pressure on Celentano in the second half. 

Second half substitute Jacen Russell-Rowe put the match to bed in the sixth minute of stoppage time after coming on just minutes earlier. The 20-year-old forward chased down a through ball into the penalty box before shooting the ball upward into the roof of the net past Celentano.

Homegrown heroes

In an all-around stellar Black & Gold performance, the efforts of Morris in midfield and Zawadzki at the back particularly stood out. Along with scoring the opening Crew goal, Morris completed 98 percent of his passes on the night, 100 percent of his tackles, had 100 percent shot accuracy, successful dribbles and accurate long balls and recorded 11 recoveries. Zawadzki looked extremely comfortable as the central center back in Nancy’s back three, a position in which he has appeared more frequently and looked more confident in recent months. 

Coaching matters

Head coach Wilfried Nancy was not present on the touchline for the match as he served the second game of his two-game suspension by the MLS Disciplinary Committee over what the committee deemed irresponsible behavior in the 87th minute of the Black & Gold’s match against New York City FC on July 8. He was still involved in the build up to the match.

What’s next

The Crew plays its next match at home against Toronto FC on Saturday, August 26 at 7:30 p.m. ET.