Over the next 15 days, the Columbus Crew will play five games, four of which will be contested inside the friendly confines of Lower.com Field. The Portland Timbers travel to Columbus to start this grueling stretch of matches.

The Black & Gold will benefit from minimal travel at the start of the stretch, especially in the first week of competition where three matches will be contested at home. Meaning the Crew will be able to rest and recharge within Central Ohio. This could result in more full-strength lineups for Wilfred Nancy.

The team’s health is improving as only forward Christian Ramirez and goalkeeper Evan Bush will be sidelined with injuries. Ramirez has begun training again and should be able to work his way into the team soon. Bush is not so lucky and will be out for months with a wrist injury. 

Here is how the Crew could line up:

Goalkeeper Patrick Schulte will start in net following appearances by Evan Bush and Nicholas Hagen as the duo combined to secure a 0-0 draw against Real Salt Lake last week. Unfortunately for Bush, he had to leave the match early due to injury and Columbus fans got their first look at backup keeper Nicholas Hagen.

Head coach Wilfried Nancy, who just signed a contract extension after one year, will rotate his lineup slightly in the backline. Nancy likely views his team as having five starters between defenders Malte Amundsen, Rudy Camacho, Yevhen Cheberko, Steven Moreira, and Sean Zawadzki. Due to Nancy’s confidence, he will give Amundsen, Moreira, and Zawadzki the starting roles while allowing Camacho and Cheberko to stay rested for the Monterrey match. Cheberko was on the quarterfinal Best XI sheet which is a testament to his growth from last season. 

Nancy will opt to go with first-choice wingbacks Mo Farsi and Yaw Yeboah, at least for the first hour to 75 minutes of the match. Portland gives up goals, the only team worse than them is the San Jose Earthquakes, and beginning the game on the front foot will be critical before rotating in preparation for Monterrey.

Midfielders Aidan Morris and captain Darlington Nagbe will be reunited after a couple matches. Nagbe earned a well-deserved rest against Real Salt Lake after an intense 120 minutes against Tigres. The legendary midfielder ended his 108 consecutive regular season matches with the second-longest streak in MLS history. 

The attacking trio will be midfielder Alex Matan and forwards Cucho Hernandez and Diego Rossi. This trio played together often in the latter half of the 2023 season and playoffs. Still, due to suspension and injuries, the trio has only started one game together, away against Minnesota. Columbus has only been able to score 10 goals in MLS this year, which is in the bottom half of the league. The Crew led the MLS in goals scored in 2023 with 67. Hopefully, the trio of Hernandez, Matan, and Rossi can get the Black & Gold back to their scoring ways.