away at his high school prom -- John Wolyniec was given the start at forward for the Red Bulls, and quickly made his presence felt. A quick one-two on the right set Dane Richards free, and he put in a low cross to the far post where Wolyniec came in to sweep it home (17).
• After the break, the Red Bulls put the game away. A throw-in from the left was flicked on, and Crew defender Marcos Gonzalez kicked it high into the air, from in front of his goalkeeper. Clint Mathis pulled away and headed the ball into the unguarded goal to double the lead in the 51st minute.
• Ten minutes later, Juan Pablo Angel scored his first MLS league goal. Intercepting a Gonzalez pass across his own penalty area, Angel strolled into the area and sent a shot past Andy Gruenebaum and inside the right post.
• Then in stoppage time, Red Bulls rookie Sal Caccavale completed the rout. Sinisa Ubiparipovic rounded a defender on the right and pulled a pass back for Caccavale who found the back of the net from the corner of the goal area, just four minutes after coming on in his MLS debut.
• The closest the Crew came was late in the second half, after winning a free kick just on the edge of the penalty area. But Guillermo Barros Schelotto saw his effort over the wall dip just a little too late, skimming the top of the crossbar.
• Red Bulls boss Bruce Arena made one change to the team that lost 1-0 to the Colorado Rapids the previous Sunday at Giants Stadium. John Wolyniec was given his first start of the season, coming in to partner Juan Pablo Angel in attack. Dema Kovalenko moved to right back as Tim Regan moved to the substitutes' bench.
• Here's Arena's team (4-1-3-2): Jon Conway - Dema Kovalenko, Carlos Mendes, Jeff Parke, Todd Dunivant - Seth Stammler - Dane Richards (Sinisa Ubiparipovic 76), Clint Mathis, Dave van den Bergh (Elie Ikangu 82) - Juan Pablo Angel, John Wolyniec (Sal Caccavale 88). Substitutes Not Used: Danny Cepero, Taylor Graham, Jerrod Laventure, Tim Regan
• "In all fairness, this was not a 4-0 game. Everyone will look at the score tomorrow and think we dominated and we certainly didn't. I think Columbus in stretches were pretty good tonight," said Arena. "However, at the end of the day, I think defensively we were pretty solid for most of the game. I think the goals we scored were timely and made a difference in the game."
TEAM NEWS
• In his first start of the season, Wolyniec scored the opening goal, then his pressure of the Crew defenders led to the second goal by Clint Mathis.
• "John had a great game tonight. He's an experienced player. He has a good attitude everyday and he plays the role that he's given," Arena said. "Give him a lot of credit; I thought he played quite well tonight. Obviously, the first goal was critically important in this game."
• For his goal and parts in two others (including being credited with a first MLS assist), Juan Pablo Angel was named MLS Player of the Week.
• "I think he played well. He made a very good pass on the first goal. He was part of the play on the second, third and fourth goals. I think he had something to do with every one of those," Arena said. "I think it's going to take time to get familiar with him. He's different than players we've had in the past. It's definitely going to take a month on the field with our team to get a feel for him and how we utilize his skills. He brings a great attitude."
• The other big tactical change was putting Dema Kovalenko at right back, with Seth Stammler returning to a holding midfield role behind Mathis, who was also asked to play a little deeper in Arena's 4-4-2 scheme.
• "I thought his first 20 minutes were a little shaky. He wasn't completely comfortable there but after that he played fine," Arena said. "I thought he played very well in the second half. It's a little out of nature for him, that position. He grew into the position as the game went on."
• It was also the first victory Angel has been a part since joining the team. In his Red Bulls debut, when he came on as a substitute, they lost 3-1 in extra time in a U.S. Open Cup qualifier to the Los Angeles Galaxy (though he scored his first goal with New York). He started for the Red Bulls for the first time in his league debut, a 1-0 loss to Colorado on May 13.
• "I think today was a different performance overall. The service from the back this week was quicker. That helps the way we play, because we are a team that likes to pass the ball around," Angel said. "But in general I think it was a more solid performance. We were clinical in attack, and when you score goals, you've always got a chance."
• Arena could have a lineup decision ahead of him, as former Austrian international Markus Schopp has returned from sports hernia surgery and is ready for selection. He is nominally a right-sided midfielder, where Dane Richards has started every game as a rookie - and scored a goal and added two assists (including a fine combination to lead to Wolyniec's opener against Columbus.)
• "I don't think Dane had his best game today but Dane on a good day or a day where he is not at his best, he still pulls off plays. He's been dangerous in every match we've played," Arena said. "I think in his first professional season, he's getting worn down a little bit. I am a big believer of flank play and he can stretch teams and he is aggressive."
CHICAGO FIRE
The Chicago Fire lost for the third consecutive game last time out, also on MLS Primetime Thursday, seeing FC Dallas grab a 2-1 victory at Toyota Park one week ago. The Fire now sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 10 points from seven matches, three points behind third-place Kansas City and three ahead of the fifth-place tie between D.C. United and the Columbus Crew.
LAST MATCH
• FC Dallas went to Chicago after defeating the Kansas City Wizards at Arrowhead Stadium, that win coming after back-to-back home 1-0 defeats. The Fire came into the game off of back-to-back 3-1 losses to New England and Toronto FC.
• The Hoops took the lead midway through the first half when Kenny Cooper converted his own penalty. Running onto a long ball all alone in the Fire penalty area, he tried to push it past Chicago goalkeeper Matt Pickens, only to be collided with in the attempt, and referee Brian Hall pointed to the spot. Cooper sent Pickens the wrong way from the spot for his fourth goal of the season.
• FCD doubled the lead on the hour. Juan Toja played the ball for Abe Thompson in the left side of the Fire penalty area, and laid back a perfect pass for Toja just outside the edge of the area, and his first-time blast took a slight deflection before beating Pickens inside his right-hand post.
• The Fire pulled a goal in the 73rd minute when Thiago slipped Chad Barrett in behind the FCD defense on the left, and he hit a sharp centering pass into the goal area where Calen Carr came in to sweep it into the back of the net for his first goal on the year.
• FC Dallas goalkeeper Dario Sala wasn't credited with a save on the night, but had the woodwork to thank on three occasions. Dasan Robinson's overhead kick from a corner came back off the crossbar in the first half, and in the second, Carr also put a close-range shot off the bar before a Thiago header in the 83rd minute crashed off the face of the left post. Cooper also saw a long-range blast crack off the bar in the second half, just seconds before the FCD second goal.
• Fire head coach Dave Sarachan made four changes to the team that lost 3-1 to Toronto FC the Saturday before. Sarachan put out a new strike force with Pascal Bedrossian and Calen Carr coming in for Chad Barrett and the injured Chris Rolfe. Ivan Guerrero came back into the midfield for the suspended Diego Gutierrez, and Chris Armas also came back into the team, for Thiago.
• Here's Sarachan's team (3-4-1-2): Matt Pickens - C.J. Brown, Jim Curtin (Brian Plotkin 64), Gonzalo Segares - Dasan Robinson, Chris Armas, Logan Pause (Thiago 68), Ivan Guerrero - Justin Mapp - Pascal Bedrossian (Chad Barrett 64), Calen Carr. Substitutes Not Used: Jon Busch, Floyd Franks, Bakary Soumare, Osei Telesford
• "It's never a good feeling to lose at home. It wasn't for a lack of effort," Sarachan said. "In the start of the half we were pretty much in full control. They were, in my opinion, gifted a penalty. I don't feel that Dallas ever really threatened, but here we are looking at a 2-1 game. We were looking to get things stirred up, but it never happened."
TEAM NEWS
• The Fire won a remarkable number of corner kicks, getting 14 for the match - just one away from the club record. However, they converted that pressure into a season-low five shots for the match, just one on target - that the Carr goal.
• "We didn't score off any, but in the last two games we did,'' Sarachan said. ''I'm not a big statistics guy, but I look at corner kicks first. They showed that we spent a lot of time in the attacking zone.''
• The Fire hit the woodwork three times on the night, by far the most in any one game in the league this season. Through the opening 46 games this season, teams have hit the crossbar or post a total of 23 times league-wide.
• "That's going to happen sometimes," Carr said. "And some of those plays, we're going to score on every one of them in practice. We had our chances and we should have come out with a win."
• Sarachan was looking to shake things up in attack with Carr and Bedrossian both making their first starts of the year. While Carr scored just one goal in 22 league appearances a year ago (just three as a starter), he played a big role in the Fire's run to the U.S. Open Cup title, scoring three goals and setting up another in three USOC appearances.
• "It was different in the beginning," said Carr to The Chicago Tribune. "I feel more confident this year because I've learned what's expected of me. The pace of the game doesn't catch me off guard as much anymore."
• After allowing just two goals in their opening four games, the Fire have now allowed eight goals over their last three games.
• "We need to be harder on the offensive guys, getting in on them hard early," said goalkeeper Matt Pickens. "We didn't really allow much tonight. It's just one of those games where they got two chances."
