The loss to D.C. United on Saturday has left a sour taste in the collective mouths of the Columbus Crew, and they can't wait until the rematch in the final regular season contest against D.C. this weekend.
For the second time this season, the teams will meet twice in a very short span. United have won the last two games between the teams, and the already-intense rivalry should be even more so following Alecko Eskandarian's ejection for a body check on Marcos Gonzalez during a stoppage in play.
"I would love to get them tomorrow," said Joseph Ngwenya following the Crew's home loss. "When you lose, you always want to get back out there and try to even things out."
First, though, the Crew will have some other business to attend to, when they take on the Michigan Bucks in the U.S. Open Cup third round on Wednesday. Then, on Saturday, comes the challenge of getting a victory against United -- they have lost just once in 18 league matches, and the Crew have managed just a single point in the three meetings between the teams, a 1-1 draw in Columbus on May 20.
"We have lost to them two times. We need to get a win," said midfielder Jacob Thomas. "We have been playing well on the road."
Three of the Crew's four wins have come on the road, but getting a result against United will be difficult. Despite the road success, which looks better because of the home failures, the Crew's last trip to the nation's capital ended rather disappointingly when the Crew suffered one of the worst losses in club history.
Yet despite that 5-1 loss at RFK Stadium on May 31, the Crew are still hopeful entering the match.
"It is good that we have them next week," said Ngwenya. "Hopefully, we can come up with a better result."
To do so, the Crew will need to overcome a team that has been pulling up points and pulling away in the standings as of late.
"They are compact. They have a good midfield," said Thomas about D.C. "They have a couple guys in the midfield that are fast and work hard. They whole team moves together well."
For the Black and Gold to pull off the upset, consistent play from the young team will be necessary.
"We have times when we stop thinking and stop focusing on the game," said coach Sigi Schmid. "We can't have so many mental lapses."
In addition to the getting reliable play, the Crew will need some goals to get out of a season-long scoring drought.
"We need to get a couple of goals to get our confidence. Then, it will all come along," said Thomas, who was given a start in attack against United last weekend, and will likely be returned there for Saturday's rematch. "Right now, we are in a slump and need to get out of it."
John Kuhn is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
