COLUMBUS, Ohio — The New York Red Bulls’ offensive onslaught continued as they overpowered the Columbus Crew in a 4-1 road victory at Crew Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
A brace by forward Kenny Cooper inside the opening 15 minutes and a classy Henry strike staked New York to a 3-0 halftime lead. The Crew's 89th-minute consolation goal by Chad Marshall was followed by Henry's second goal of the match as he regained the lead from Cooper in the MLS goalscoring race.
The Red Bulls, who have now scored 13 goals in their last three matches, came out of the gates with guns blazing as Cooper used his size to out-muscle Crew central defender Eric Gehrig and slotted a left-footed shot into the bottom right corner past Crew goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum for a 3rd minute New York lead.
Ten minutes later, Cooper bagged his second goal of the afternoon when a deflected ball found the Red Bulls' striker inside the Crew's six-yard box. There was little Gruenebaum could do as Cooper looped a header out of the keeper's reach and over the goal line for a 2-0 score line.
OPTA Chalkboard: Crew's defense proves porous vs. NY
Henry extended New York's lead to 3-0 just before halftime, leading a counterattack and slotting home to the far post around Gruenebaum for his sixth goal in three matches.
The Crew's second-half response involved bringing on Dilly Duka for Bernardo Añor in the 57th minute for his first appearance since injuring his hamstring on March 10 in Colorado. Duka challenged Red Bulls 'keeper Ryan Meara with three shots during his shift.
Columbus forward Emilio Rentería missed an opportunity to get one back for the Crew in the 63rd minute, missing the mark after an open look at goal.
In the following minutes, Columbus continued to create chances as rookie Ethan Finlay fired a shot from close rage, only to be saved by a charging Meara to preserve the clean sheet. Seconds later, Rentería’s header from a Shaun Francis cross sailed just right of goal.
The Crew's lone tally came in the 89th minute as midfielder Kirk Urso found his captain Chad Marshall on a corner kick to make it 3-1.
Henry restored New York's three-goal lead with his second goal of the day just moments later, striking an easy shot from 15 yards into the upper right corner of the goal.
The victory by the Red Bulls (3-2-0, nine points) moves them into sole possession of second place in the MLS Eastern Conference standings with nine points behind Sporting Kansas City. They next host the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday, April 14. The Crew (2-2-0, six points) travel to Philadelphia on the same day for a nationally televised match on NBC Sports Network (3:30 pm ET).
