All season long, the Columbus Crew and the New York Red Bulls have been dumping goals in on each other at will. All three games ended in 2-1 results, and that could make the Eastern Conference Finals an exciting 180-minute saga.
The first chapter will be written at MAPFRE Stadium on Sunday night.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Columbus Crew +130
New York Red Bulls +210 Draw +250
Over/Under 2.5 (over -120)
ODDS ANALYSIS
The Crew have to be the favorites over 90 minutes in this game since they're playing at home where they've been so darn good all year long. That said, the Red Bulls are understandably the favorites to get out of this series and are the favorites at +145 to win the MLS Cup.
The margins aren't convincing on any side, but one would like to think that Columbus would need to put together a winning result at +130 to have any chance of reaching the MLS Cup final.
The total in this game is the higher of the two conference finals at 2.5 and -120 vig on the over. That's a bit surprising considering how offensive-minded these two teams have generally been this year against each other, but we must keep in mind that the first legs of these home-and-home series tend to be played close to the vest.
KEY INJURIES
The Crew made it out of their series with Montreal with no new major injury woes. The midfield is still a little beat up with Kristinn Steindorsson and Mohammed Saeid both out, but aside from that, this is a healthy club ready to take on the Supporters' Shield winners.
RBNY is in okay shape as well. Chris Duvall is obviously out for the long haul after breaking his leg in July, but aside from that, there aren't any major injury woes to be bothered with.
It's worth noting that Gaston Sauro has been suspended for this match for the Crew after picking up yellow cards in both games against Montreal.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"They were three completely different games. In the first one, their press caught us by surprise. In the second one, our play caught them by surprise. In the third, they took advantage of some mistakes after what I felt was a very good start. To me, it's going to be interesting how both teams react and what the mindset of both teams are." – Columbus head coach Gregg Berhalter on the regular MLS season meetings between these two clubs
HOW THEY GOT HERE
The Red Bulls really never had a problem with D.C. United to open up the playoffs. They weren't great offensively, something that you never see out of this unit, but they were solid in the midfield, controlled possession, and kept D.C. from really getting any positive momentum going forward. Heck, it took over 150 minutes for United to get its first shot on goal in the home-and-home series. New York advanced on aggregate 2-0.
Columbus needed some extra time to get past Montreal, but we believe it was the better team on the pitch for the totality of the 180 minutes. Kei Kamara was the hero who got the job done in the extra frame with a brilliant header to give the Crew the 5-4 win on aggregate in extra time.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Columbus has been an incredible forward-thinking team of late, and both Kamara and Federico Higuain were dangerous the entire series against the Impact.
That said, there have been problems at the back as well, and Bradley Wright-Phillips, who was quiet for the most part against D.C. United, is the type of man who can slice through that defense. Lloyd Sam and Mike Grella should both be strong in attack as well, and we have to imagine that RBNY is going to get at least one crucial away goal.
This day is for Columbus, though. The Crew should edge a back-and-forth affair out, though we think New York will leave the happier of the two sides, knowing that all will be left to play for next Sunday at Red Bull Arena.
Columbus 3, New York 2
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