The Columbus Crew defeated C.F. Pachuca on Friday night to earn its second straight Leagues Cup group stage win, building on the Black & Gold’s 3-1 win over Atlas F.C. earlier in the week. 

An acrobatic finish from Brais Méndez put the Black & Gold ahead in the 19th minute. Andre Gomes played a backheel pass from the touchline to Malte Amundsen at the left side of the 18-yard box. Amundsen lofted a short, left-footed cross into the six-yard box, prompting Méndez to launch into the air and slice the ball with a left-footed scissor kick. His strike marks the Crew’s newest DP signing’s third goal in his first three appearances for the club.

Pachuca’s Salomón Rondón thought he had netted the equalizer in the 42nd minute, but his strike was overturned by the VAR. Rondón received a through ball at the top of the 18-yard box, shielding the ball from Cesar Ruvalcaba as he strove for goal. He fired a low, right-footed shot into the bottom left corner of the net past Schulte before he was ruled offside for receiving the ball past the Crew’s last defender.

Two minutes into first half injury time, Dániel Gazdag wrote his name onto the scoresheet and doubled the Crew’s lead. Méndez’s left-footed corner from the right reached Amundsen at the left side of the 18-yard box. Amundsen crossed it into the box first-time with his left, Rudy Camacho hit the ball upward with his knee, and Gazdag thumped a header past Carlos Moreno into the net.

Pachuca battled back and managed to halve the scoreline in the 72nd minute. Alan Mozo sent a lobbed, pinpoint cross in from the right side of the field, which Oussama Idrissi pounced on as he guided a header into the right side of the net from the left edge of the six-yard box.

Just two minutes later, Pachuca went down to 10 men. Already sitting on a yellow card for a previous challenge in the 15th minute, Sergio Barreto was sent off after receiving a second yellow card in the 74th minute for a challenge on Steven Moreira. As Moreira knocked the ball forward in an attempt to dribble past him, Barreto stood in his path and bodychecked him to the ground.

The Black & Gold, bursting with momentum following their opponent’s sending off, nearly found the back of the net a third time in the 77th minute. Chase Adams, driving toward the right side of the six-yard box, cut the ball back to Amundsen, who lined up a rising shot that ricocheted off the crossbar and out of play.

Despite facing mounting pressure from their Liga MX opposition, Laurent Courtois’ men battled throughout the 90’ to keep the lead intact. Patrick Schulte was forced to make 10 saves, while a strong performance from the backline and the sturdy midfield duo of Tarun Karumanchi and Gomes kept things at bay. What momentum C.F. Monterey gained as they halved the scoreline was minimized when Barreto was sent off just two minutes later, and the Black & Gold were able to hold on to secure a victory.

With the result, the Black & Gold rise to 2nd place in the Leagues Cup’s MLS standings with 6 points, with other games from Matchday 2 still to be played.

Next up, the Black & Gold face Pumas UNAM in their third match of the Leagues Cup group stage on Tuesday, August 11 at 7:30 p.m. ET at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field. The match will be available to stream on Apple TV.