Columbus Crew in MLS Cup title with 3-0 win over Seattle
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Lucas Zelarayán scored midway through the first half and added the clincher in the 82nd minute and the Columbus Crew won their second MLS Cup title, beating the defending champion Seattle Sounders 3-0 on Saturday night.
“We were not going to let history in the past determine today,” Porter said. “This is our year. This is going to be our year, it was going to be our day, it was going to be our trophy. And that was my message before the game. I don’t care what they’ve done in the past, it’s going to be decided on today.”
Lucas Zelarayan scored midway through the first half and added the clincher in the 82nd minute, and the Crew won their second MLS Cup title, beating the defending champion Seattle Sounders 3-0 on Saturday night.
Derrick Etienne Jr. also scored in the first 45 minutes for the Crew, who withstood the Sounders’ second-half pressure and finally celebrated after Zelarayan’s second goal.
Zelarayan, the MLS newcomer of the year and largest signing in franchise history, was the best player on the field on a night the Crew were playing short-handed. The Crew were without midfielders Darlington Nagbe and Pedro Santos after both tested positive for COVID-19 this week.
The Crew claimed their first title since 2008 and denied the Sounders a chance at being just the fourth back-to-back champions in league history. The Sounders, playing in their fourth final in five years, were trying to be the first repeat champions since the LA Galaxy in 2011-12.
“It’s a massive opportunity to go back to back, which happens very, very rarely. It happens very rarely that you find yourself in situations to win the big one. So who knows if we’ll ever make it back?” Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei said. “It’s a massive, squandered opportunity for us and all credit to them. They played a good game. They were hungry.” sources told.
What a night. What a season. What a team. pic.twitter.com/2WyLj9FtV9
— The Crew (@ColumbusCrew) December 13, 2020
It was the first appearance in the final for the Crew since 2015, when they were denied a title by the Portland Timbers and current Columbus coach Caleb Porter. The franchise nearly was relocated just a few years ago, but efforts to keep the team in Columbus proved successful, and now there is a championship to celebrate.
