Columbus Crew vs Philadelphia Union – On Wednesday, Columbus Crew and Philadelphia Union will compete at Lower.com Field to determine who will be the first to secure a spot in the Leagues Cup final.
Both teams reached this stage after thrilling penalty shootouts; Columbus edged past New York City FC 4-3, while Philadelphia achieved the same result against Mazatlan.
Columbus Crew is now just one victory away from their first-ever appearance in a Leagues Cup final. Their journey to the semi-finals has been anything but smooth, with the Crew needing to come from behind in both of their matches.
Although they progressed in their last match, Columbus hasn’t won in regular time after scoring only once since their 1-0 victory over the Houston Dynamo in the CONCACAF Champions Cup (CCC) back in March.
Under the leadership of Wilfried Nancy, the Crew have never lost a Leagues Cup knockout match at home within 90 minutes. Their only home defeat came in a penalty shootout against Minnesota United (4-3) in last year’s round of 32.
In their last home semi-final, Columbus defeated Monterrey 2-1 in April, advancing to the CONCACAF Champions Cup final with a 5-2 aggregate win.
Historically, Columbus has defeated four MLS opponents in this tournament and has never been shut out in any of those games.
Philadelphia Union, meanwhile, had a tough battle against Mazatlan but held their nerve to advance via penalties. This victory secured their place in the Leagues Cup semi-finals for the second consecutive year, offering them a chance for redemption after last year’s 4-1 defeat to Inter Miami at this stage.
However, the Union have struggled in recent semi-final appearances, failing to progress in their last three attempts in the Champions Cup or Leagues Cup.
Wednesday’s match will be only their second knockout fixture in this competition away from Subaru Park, having defeated FC Cincinnati 4-2 in this year’s round of 16.
That victory ended a four-match away losing streak across all competitions, with their previous away win coming against the New England Revolution at Gillette Stadium in May (3-0).
Philadelphia is unbeaten in their last seven meetings with Columbus but has never won at Lower.com Field.
Columbus Crew Leagues Cup form: WWW
Columbus Crew form (all competitions): WDLWWW
Philadelphia Union Leagues Cup form: WLWWW
Philadelphia Union form (all competitions): WWLWWW
Columbus Crew vs Philadelphia Union – Over the weekend, Columbus was without Taha Habroune, who hasn’t played since returning from the CONCACAF Under-20 Championship, while Evan Bush remains out with a wrist injury.
Cucho Hernandez scored the equalizer against NYCFC in the quarter-finals. Patrick Schulte replaced Nicholas Hagen in goal, making one penalty save, while Santiago Rodriguez of NYCFC missed his spot-kick, neutralizing a miss by Diego Rossi.
For Philadelphia, Isaiah LeFlore is not expected to play as he continues to recover from a right knee injury, and Tai Baribo will be unavailable after receiving two yellow cards in the first half against Mazatlan.
Mikael Uhre scored Philadelphia’s only goal last weekend, while Andre Blake was the hero with two penalty saves to help his team advance.
Columbus Crew possible starting lineup: Schulte; Moreira, Camacho, Cheberko; Farsi, Zawadzki, Nagbe, Jones; Ramirez, Rossi; Hernandez
Philadelphia Union possible starting lineup: Blake; Harriel, Glesnes, Elliott, Wagner; Flach; Q. Sullivan, McGlynn; Gazdag; Donovan, Uhre