Diego Rossi's goal lifted the Columbus Crew into the League Cup final with a 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Union.
It was a dream start for the reigning MLS Cup champions who got the opening goal they deserved after putting a lot of pressure on the Union defense early on. Columbus talisman Juan 'Cucho' Hernandez cut inside with his favorite foot and headed in a cross that Andre Blake first handled before Diego Rossi finished off the move with a header from close range.
Although Blake did well to get a hand on Hernandez's ball, the Jamaican could not do anything with Rossi's header as he was in the right place when he put the hosts 1-0 up early on.
However, Union will return to the first half and make things right through Daniel Gazdag. A poor tackle and pass from Columbus' Yevhen Cheberko in the penalty area saw Gazdag pounce on a defender's mistake and fire past Patrick Schulte. Schulte's pass to Cheberko was not very good, and Cheberko's big mistake gave the Union a chance to make things right.
Just before the break, the Crew managed to regain the lead with an effort from Rossi. The Uruguayan found Christian Ramirez at the top of the Philadelphia penalty area before racing past the Union back. Ramirez picked out Columbus' number 10 with a high pass that Rossi finally found with a well-placed volley to put Columbus back in the driver's seat.
The Crew added to the lead early in the second half after a strong performance from the Eastern Conference team. Defender Steven Moreira found himself with the ball in the final third and teed up Hernandez – his first-time effort saved by Blake. However, Hernandez quickly followed by blasting a shot into the roof of the net to make it 3-1 in favor of the Crew.
As the full-time whistle blew at Lower.com Field, the Crew made their final appearance as they face either LAFC or the Colorado Rapids in Sunday night's Cup Final. Although the Union will not get the trophy, they will still have a chance to come home in third place depending on who comes up short in the LAFC-Colorado Rapids semi final.
GK: Patrick Schulte – 6/10 – It was partly the fault of Gazdag's goal due to his convincing pass to Cheberko in front of his own goal. It is raised to make several buttons to stop in the extended area.
CB: Steven Moreira – 7/10 – He's rock-solid in defense and got into the game early with a nice cross that almost counted as an assist.
CB: Rudy Camacho – 6/10 – Camacho makes noise in the background to prevent the Union from mounting a comeback.
CB: Yevhen Cheberko – 5/10 – There were no problems in the defense but his poor touch and attempted passing led to the visitors pulling one back.
RWB: Mohamed Farsi – 7/10 – One of the Crew's best performers of the night. He put in several good crosses early in the game and kept moving up and down the right side of the pitch.
CM: Sean Zawadzki – 6/10 – A quiet but good performance from Zawadzki.
CM: Darlington Nagbe – 7/10 – The midfield general made another change to play his part in the Crew's win. His anticipation and awareness were on point as he aided the progression of the midfield play time after time.
LWB: Max Arfsten – 6/10 – Started strongly with a couple of brilliant runs down the left but faded as the game wore on.
AM: Christian Ramirez – 7/10 – The 32-year-old also came to the fore playing an attacking midfield position just behind Hernandez. He also gave himself up close to the Union penalty area as he grabbed the assist for Rossi's second goal.
AM: Diego Rossi – 9/10 – What a performance from Rossi. The former LAFC put the team on his back to add his fifth and sixth goals of the tournament in just his fourth game — leading all players — to propel the Crew to another finals appearance.
ST: Cucho Hernandez – 8/10 – Columbus's No. 9 also scored a goal when he received an assist. His performance may have gone under the radar when you look at Rossi's brace but it was another impressive display from the Colombia international.
What you are holding
SUB: Alexandru Matan (88' for Rossi) – N/A
SUB: Dylan Chambost (88' for Ramirez) – N/A
SUB: Malte Amundsem (88' for Arfsten) – N/A
The manager
Wilfried Nancy – 9/10 – It was about a flawless performance from Nancy's side apart from Cheberko's mistake near his own goal. The Crew again dominated for most of the game and will fancy their chances regardless of who they face in the final this weekend.
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