Yep that is right. The Crew have made it into the Wild Card playoff match against Colorado. The season has been up and down and they did just enough to get to the post season. To get some inspiration for this preview I decided, against my better judgment, to see what other people are saying. Let me back track. Usually I look at stats, reports, and the opposing team, but this time I decided to see what others were thinking. It turns out that people do not like The Crew. Yep, I am just a shocked as you are. They do not like The Crew. I cannot get over that. It is one thing to be ultra loyal to your local team and it is another thing to say that it would be, “…bad for the MLS for the Crew to win…” This person, whom I am intentionally leaving his name out of it, goes on to say that The Crew are a terrible team. WHAT? A terrible team? This is news to me. Like I said they have been up and down this season but let’s be realistic; this was a “rebuilding” year.
I have said it all year that they are better than people give them credit for, but to say that it would be bad for the MLS for them to win is going a bit too far. Would The Crew have been able to make the post season under last year’s playoff structure? No, but MLS decided to make a change and we, as fans and teams, have to abide by them. Dems da breaks, as the saying goes. Do I think that The Crew will win the MLS Cup? It is unlikely, due to several factors, but to say that they do not deserve it nor is it good for MLS…c’mon son. (Thanks Ed Lover.) That writer’s main argument of The Crew being a bad team is their goal differential, -1. No it is not a great record but when The Crew were on they were on and when they were off they were off. They could score goals in bunches and let goals in, in bunches. These are thing that have to be taken into account to determine whether a team is good or bad. I think that this writer may have been Canadian and that would explain his hatred of Columbus.
Okay, enough of that. Let’s get to the fact that Columbus play Colorado on Thursday in Colorado. This will either be a great game for Columbus or a bad game. This game may not go well for The Crew because they are at Colorado and their road record is less than stellar, 4-10-3. To add to that record they will be dealing with high altitude and freezing temperature. That being said what does Columbus have to lose? Nothing at all. Yes, they are coming into the single elimination game in bad form and yes they still do lack leadership but what do they have to lose? They are a relatively young team that may not know any better. People are saying that they do not deserve to be there. So what? Here is what I say, go get ‘em. Show them that the Eastern Conference is not a weak one. Show them the Columbus side that almost won the East. Prove the doubters wrong. Look for this game to be a slow one. It will be played, for The Crew, on the wings through Eddie Gavin and Robbie Rodgers. I am interested to see who will start up-top or will Robert Warzycha play an extra midfielder? For my money I say go for it. We have to go all out; I want to see 4-3-3. There I said it. This is not a home-home series. This is win and in. Play that way. That is the way I see it. Win or lose enjoy the beautiful game and make today better than yesterday.
(image courtesy of thecrew.com)
