There is a real argument to be made for Saturday’s match to be the biggest in Columbus Crew history. The CONCACAF Champions Cup Final represents a chance for the Black & Gold to become the second MLS team in the modern era to win a continental championship (Columbus’s first of any kind), qualify for the 2025 Club World Cup, and a giant cash prize. All that stands in the Black & Gold’s way is another CONCACAF giant in Pachuca.

Los Tuzos has won the CCC five times in their history and is keen to add a 6th in their home stadium. The Crew enter off the back of three straight road victories in MLS play, knowing a 4th straight win would enter them into the history books. Pachuca enters Saturday’s contest on the heels of a relatively unsuccessful domestic campaign which saw them finish 7th in the Liga MX Clausura and lose to eventual champions Club America in the Liguilla quarterfinals.

Saturday presents a huge opportunity for both Pachuca and the Black & Gold to win a coveted trophy and continue to advance their respective reputations. Below is everything you need to know about Pachuca before this massive showdown, and an insight into how the Black & Gold can come back to Columbus with a continental trophy.

CF Pachuca at a Glance:

Record: 9-2-6 (29 points)

Form (All Competitions): D-D-W-D-W

Leading Scorer: Salomon Rondon (10)

Assist Leader: Oussama Idrissi

Player to Watch: Oussama Idrissi

Idrissi is the assist leader for this Pachuca side and is at the heart of most of its best attacking moments. The 28-year-old Moroccan international joined Pachuca in September after bouncing around in Europe and has hit the ground running with seven goals and 14 assists in 32 matches across all competitions for Pachuca. Typically operating on the left wing, Idrissi usually looks to move inside and operate in the “half-space” when Pachuca is in possession. This allows him to use his favored right foot to pick out shots and passes, as well as allows his teammates to make overlapping runs to threaten the end line. Idrissi is a delightful dribbler when in 1v1 situations as can use both his pace and skill to skip past defenders. Idrissi excels as a shot-creator for his teammates but is also able to finish his own chances, especially when shooting from distance. Idrissi’s movement inside can often cause defenders problems when trying to solve who should defend him in the heat of the moment. Idrissi punishes these brief defensive lapses with regularity and will look to do the same again on Saturday.

How CF Pachuca plays: 

Guillermo Almada leads Pachuca from the touchline this year as this match will complete his third year with Tuzos. Almada, who hails from Uruguay is one of the most experienced coaches in this region and has had stints at clubs such as Santos Laguna in Mexico and River Plate in Argentina. Almada leads his side with clarity in his own game model and is well respected as a tactician within coaching circles. Typically operating out of a 4-2-3-1 formation, his Pachuca side have developed a well balanced style of play that usually enables them to compete with whomever their opponents are. Pachuca have a huge reliance on individual quality in the attack and collective sturdiness in defense. They look to wear their opponents down with direct, physical, play to allow for their special players to create special moments, as well as force their opponents to make mistakes. Their style of play will make them a very intriguing matchup for Columbus, especially as they have had plenty of time to prepare since their final Liga MX match on May 11th.

When Pachuca has the ball, they are typically patient until they can afford not to be. What I mean by this is that it isn’t uncommon to see Pachuca circle the ball from side to side with their back four and central midfielders for an extended period of time. In fact, Pachuca was 8th in Liga MX in possession this season ranking above teams like Club America and Monterrey. However, Pachuca’s chance creation rarely comes from possession, instead, Pachuca will look to play direct balls either into their striker or wide players and attack from there. These long balls allow Pachuca to put pressure on their opponent to deal with them, as well as allow their midfielders to win the second balls and then attack in the final third. Lastly, Pachuca leads Liga MX, by a wide margin of Shot Created Actions following a successful Take On attempt. To put that into layman’s terms, Pachuca creates a lot of shots after one of their players beats an opponent in a 1v1 scenario. This is in part because the frequency of these direct balls stretches their opponents, limiting defensive cover, and due to the quality of players they have in the attack and their ability to win individual battles.

Without the ball, Pachuca again aims to put pressure on their opponents. Pachuca will regularly press their opponents as high up the field as possible in order to force mistakes and win the ball back close to the goal they are attacking. Pachuca finished second in Liga MX in both Defensive Actions in their attacking third and Shots Created by Defensive Actions. These statistics are both produced by an effective high press that forces mistakes. However, once this pressure is beaten, Pachuca will quickly transition into an effective low block defense. Usually shifting into a 4-1-4-1 shape, Pachuca was third best in Mexico in touches allowed for their opponents inside their 18 yard box. There is also a substantial drop off in the number of defensive actions Tuzos completes in their defensive third compared to their middle and attacking thirds. This shows a willingness to risk getting beaten or committing a foul higher up the pitch, as well as a shift in focus to defending their goal in the defensive third for Pachuca.

For those readers who are well versed in MLS clubs and their general Modus Operandi (and open to me casting big generalizations,) Pachuca’s best MLS comparison is a really high quality 2024 New York Red Bulls side.

How the Crew can win:

The Black & Gold are on the verge of a historic and relatively unprecedented continental triumph. The final hurdle is a Pachuca team that has won this competition five times and has had weeks to prepare for Columbus. Regardless, this game presents an interesting tactical battle between two contrasting styles of play. In order to make the advantages that the Crew will have count, there are a few things the Black & Gold need to do well on Saturday. 

1. Play Through the Press: Pachuca is going to take risks to try and press Columbus and win the ball in attacking areas. Not only do the Crew need to not give the ball away in moments, but they can really threaten Pachuca when they play through this pressure. Look for the Crew to play forward passes whenever possible as Pachuca applies pressure. 
2. Deal with the Direct Balls: The Crew’s biggest Achilles heel defensively is dealing with direct aerial balls at the backline. They’ll likely face a plethora of similar balls like that on Saturday. The Crew needs to be well positioned to win these balls and be ready and able to win the second balls to avoid Pachuca from gaining the ball in dangerous attacking areas. Additionally, this will help the Crew maintain possession and control of the match by limiting Pachuca’s ability to attack in their half. 
3. Switch the Point of Attack: The Crew can really hurt Pachuca if they do this well. Specifically, the Crew should look to do this when Pachuca is applying pressure high up the field. In order to both press high and have proper defensive cover, Pachuca will have to commit a lot of players to the area of the field the ball is on. If the Crew can play through this pressure and then quickly switch the point of attack they’ll find attackers in a 1v1 situation, at worst. This will allow the Crew to threaten and provide them space to attack in the final third.