When the Columbus Crew announced Henrick Rydström as the club’s ninth full-time head coach on the final day of December, the expectation was that it would be more of the same. The Crew was changing coaches after Wilfried Nancy’s departure to Celtic; the Black & Gold were not lowering their standards.

However, very little went according to plan in the months that followed, both on the pitch and off it, as became clear when Massive Report spoke to general manager Issa Tall and club sources. There was a lack of on-field chemistry between players and staff, which led to messaging issues that were apparent as games broke down. The structure of players’ days and even travel differed from the past, with more, longer team meetings. When those meetings didn’t lead to results, players began to question the point of having so many, and some disagreed with the need to be at the OhioHealth Performance Center as much as the new staff demanded.

As one source told Massive Report, “the joy that these players played with the last few years was gone.”

Through 13 matches in 2026, Columbus has a 3-7-4 record, allowing 23 goals and scoring only 19. The Crew sits 13th in the Eastern Conference, just four points out of an MLS Cup playoff spot. 

This is a far cry from the success of recent seasons. In head coach Wilfried Nancy’s first season, the Black & Gold had some early hiccups but were 5-5-3 after 13 games, having scored 26 goals. While players had to adjust to Nancy’s 3-4-3 formation and on-ball demands and the front office sought the right moves to fit their new head coach, there were positive signs.

By the end of the 2023 season, Columbus won MLS Cup and was, without question, one of the most exciting teams to watch in the league.

The same cannot be said of Rydström’s start with the Crew. He has not been able to maintain the standard set by the club under Nancy, who led the club to the playoffs in all three years in charge, reached the Champions Cup Final and won the Leagues Cup in 2024.

As a result, Rydström’s time with the Black & Gold came to an end on Sunday, when the Swede was relieved of his duties in Columbus. 

It’s a shrewd move by Tall. Ryström was Tall’s first coaching hire after Tall took over as GM from Tim Bezbatchenko during the 2024 season, and he elected to pull the rip cord after just five and a half months. While Tall believes the hiring process was handled correctly, he too is under scrutiny, even though he remains employed by the club.

“The thing is, and similar to players, you don’t know what you get until they get here,” Tall told Massive Report when asked about the decision to move on from Rydstrom so quickly. “So Henrik coming in, obviously, there was this adaptation phase where we had to fix some things here and there. And he had to adapt to us, the players had to adapt to him. But the one thing we couldn’t anticipate was the connection between the coach and the player. And that’s what we haven’t had.”

The results speak for themselves, but the performances have been especially difficult for fans to watch. The same is true in the front office.

Rydström was expected to build on what Nancy accomplished with the Crew. Although the two have typically set up their teams differently, they were both known for their exciting, attacking styles of play. Rydström’s Malmö teams in his native Sweden used his Relationism style to dominate possession and create overloads. He talked of being more direct than Nancy’s teams, aiming to get players into scoring positions.

Fans who have watched the Black & Gold this season have rarely seen anything that resembles Columbus over the last three years or Rydström’s Malmö teams that won championships. What was expected to be a slow shift from Nancy’s tactics quickly changed when Rydström switched to a 4-4-2 formation after just a few matches. It quickly became clear that he was not going to play like his predecessor and had also thrown most of his tactics – the ones that got him the job – out the window, opting for a low block and a defensive approach while trying to counter-attack opponents.

After a winless start to the season, this shift led to slight improvements, with the Crew losing only once in seven matches across all competitions in April. But outside of two convincing U.S. Open Cup wins over lower-league sides, the Black & Gold lacked the flair and energy that had become synonymous with the club.

The loss of Designated Player striker Wessam Abou Ali to a torn ACL in mid-April did not help. A team that was struggling to score goals was now without a player who had five goals and one assist in seven matches to start his first full season in Columbus. 

However, that was not sufficient justification for a club with numerous attacking options and one of the highest-scoring records in MLS over the past three seasons to play the way it did.

“I think for any coach or any club in the league, if you lose your top striker, and in Wessam’s case, one of the best strikers in the league, of course, your team is not going to be the same. However, with Wessam, I think we only won one game,” Tall told Massive Report. “And then I understand that we lost Wissam, but the window was closed and you cannot just bring another player just like that by snapping your fingers.

“Then I also heard, and it’s true, Jamal Thiaré got injured, which is unfortunate. But even when Jamal Thiaré was not injured, we didn’t play him. And then even with Jamal Thiaré’s injury, you could still find a way to have any players, whether it’s Diego (Rossi) or Daniel (Gazdag) playing as a No. 9, or you could play Nariman (Akhundzada) or you can play Chase (Adams). It’s not about the personnel. Yes, you lose Wessam, which is a big one, but it’s more than that.”

Ryström began the season by playing Rossi, the club’s top goal-scorer from last season, as a right midfielder/winger. After saying players in MLS took instructions too literally – Rossi stayed too pinned to the right side – he moved Rossi to his more natural central role.

This was an example of the disconnect between Rydström and his players during his five and a half months in Columbus. Despite numerous meetings, the information was not communicated in a way that translated into success on the field. The once free-flowing, creative Crew was filled with players who were overthinking and looked like shells of the players they’d proven to be.

“We had daily meetings and after the game, we’re all in the locker room. The week after a win or a loss, you’re here among the players and you can see body languages,” Tall explained. “You can see how they respond to comments, how they react to things. So ultimately, you can just see the players’ demeanor. And I think some of it, you don’t even need to be here in the building. I think you’ve seen enough of the Crew and I’m sure you’ve seen some of our players, how they were coming out on the field or how they were leaving the field and something was off.”

A team that once had so much camaraderie and excitement during matches looked like they had no interest in playing together. The goals that have been scored have not led to normal celebrations. After conceding, players dropped their shoulders or squabbled.

This wasn’t just on game days. Training was affected by the mood. Of course, things aren’t as lively when a team isn’t winning. Players who aren’t playing as much as they would like won’t always bring the same energy.

“Players weren’t able to adjust to the change in style,” a source told Massive Report. “He wasn’t getting buy-in. Then he lost the locker room.” 

Tall recognized the problem and chose to move on rather than let a bad situation worsen.

Assistant coach Laurent Courtois, who began coaching the club’s U-17 team, led Columbus Crew 2 to the first-ever MLS NEXT Pro championship. Other than a year as CF Montreal’s head coach, Courtois has been part of the organization since 2019. Courtois steps in as the interim head coach. Courtois is well-respected within the organization, having been considered for the manager position during both the Nancy and Rydström hiring processes.

“We put our full trust into Laurent,” Tall told Massive Report. “He’s someone that’s been with us since 2019. He’s part of our club, really. He does love our club, and he’s only deserving of this. We’ve considered him since 2022, to be honest with you, and it’s only fair for us to really be behind him and hoping for him to succeed.”

The team returned to training on Monday after being informed on Sunday of the decision to part ways with Rydström. The vibes were markedly different around the OhioHealth Performance Center, sources told Massive Report, with an improved mood among players and staff. While players liked Rydström as a person, Rydström as a coach and assistant Theodor Olsson and analyst Mak Pakhei were a different matter. Training sessions and meetings had reached a point where many involved weren’t looking forward to coming to work, something that had rarely been a problem over the past three seasons.

One thing that stood out to Tall about Rydström was how often he brought up the past, discussing Nancy’s tenure, both the good and the bad. Tall, along with many within the Crew organization, believed that the combination of a lack of results and the disconnect between the Swedish manager and the team he took over as the calendar flipped to 2026 had become untenable. 

“Honestly, with Henrik, with all the homework (we did), we were pretty comfortable. It’s just that ultimately, unfortunately, it just didn’t come across to the players, so we had to think of the players and the club. And look, Henrik, obviously, he’s the one now that’s leaving the club, but it’s also everybody’s responsibility. It’s mine, it’s the players, because they’re the ones on the field. It’s coaches, because they’re the ones that we’re also trying to find a solution. But the decision was made with the club in mind, in continuing to compete for a championship. There’s no gap here, there’s no transition here, there’s no – I’m sorry, we are accustomed to this at this club. We are the Crew, whether you like it or not, and we will not lower this (expectation).”

Now the Black & Gold can look to the future with Courtois and whatever comes beyond.