After getting their third win of the season last weekend against D.C. United, the Columbus Crew returned to the friendly confines of Lower.com Field to welcome CF Montreal for the first time this season.

The Canadian side entered the match after terminating former Columbus Crew 2 head coach Laurent Courtois earlier in the week.

Columbus entered the match with a 14-5-7 record against Montreal, and the Black & Gold were looking to make it six unbeaten against their Canadian counterparts in their last seven meetings.

The match started with a significant challenge of rain. The downpour forced players to be extra cautious with their passing and touches on the slippery surface.

It wasn’t until early on in the 11th minute that Columbus sought the breakthrough.

After being pressed in their defensive half by Montreal, the Crew managed to play their way out of danger. Yevhen Cheberko found Jacen Russell-Rowe in the center of the park, who quickly sent AZ Jackson on a goal-bound run with a well-placed ball. Jackson outpaced his marker, collected the ball, and calmly slotted it home at the far post, securing his second goal of the season.

Columbus soon doubled its lead in the 27th minute when Steven Moreira was able to slot a pass through on goal to Russell-Rowe. The forward took one touch to collect before sending it into the top corner at the far post to make the score 2-0.

The visitors thought they might have cut the deficit in half in the 33rd minute through Caden Clark, but after a quick video review, Clark was in an offside position, negating the goal.

Montreal gained momentum as the half proceeded on, but the visitors could not find the back of the net before the halftime whistle. On the other hand, Columbus played it safe, padding their possession stat to 55% at the break.

The momentum carried into the second half for Montreal, with Prince Owusu scoring in the 50th minute to cut the Crew’s lead to 2-1. The original decision saw Owusu offside, but another video review deemed Owusu onside, letting the goal stand.

Montreal nearly tied the game after a bad turnover by goalkeeper Patrick Schulte, but Mohamed Farsi was quick to block the shot and concede a corner.

The visitors equalized in the 82nd minute through Victor Loturi, but after the third video review on the night, Loturi was found to be in an offside position, disallowing the equalizing goal.

Columbus maintained the lead until the end, seeing out the six minutes of second-half stoppage time to move to 4-0-3 on the year.

Columbus scores goals

With another match scoring two or more goals, the Crew enjoys a league-best mark of 45 regular season multi-goal matches since 2023. They are three ahead of Inter Miami who have 42.

What’s next?

The Columbus Crew are back on the road yet again, as they travel to take on St. Louis CITY on Sunday, April 13, for the first time in MLS play. Kickoff is slated for 8:30 p.m. EDT. You can watch the match on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.