2021 Columbus Crew season
Columbus Crew 2021 soccer season
The 2021 Columbus Crew season was the club's twenty-sixth season of existence and their twenty-sixth consecutive season in Major League Soccer , the top flight of American soccer. The season covers the period from December 13, 2020, to November 7, 2021. It is the third season under head coach Caleb Porter .
The 2021 season sees Columbus defending their 2020 MLS Cup championship , as well as the opening of Lower.com Field , the club's new downtown stadium. They hosted the 2021 Campeones Cup against Cruz Azul , the winner of the Liga MX 's Campeón de Campeones winning 2–0. The club also participated in the CONCACAF Champions League , their first appearance since the 2010–11 tournament .
The team began playing the season under the name Columbus Crew SC until a rebrand on May 10, 2021, after which the name was changed to Columbus SC . However, after criticism over the rebrand was spurred by its fans, the club announced that it would return to its original name. The "SC" was dropped and the club was once again the Columbus Crew .[ 1] [ 2]
This was the last season in which Columbus Crew played at Historic Crew Stadium , where the team played their final match against the Chicago Fire on June 19, 2021, with a 2–0 win.[ 3] The team then moved to Lower.com Field near downtown Columbus, where they would play their first match at the new stadium against the New England Revolution with a 2–2 draw on July 3, 2021.[ 4] [ 5]
Roster
As of match played April 15, 2021[ 6]
No.
Name
Nationality
Position(s)
Date of birth (age)
Signed in
Previous club
Apps
Goals
Goalkeepers
1
Eloy Room (INT)
GK
(1989-02-06 ) February 6, 1989 (aged 32)
2019
PSV
29
0
13
Eric Dick
GK
(1994-10-03 ) October 3, 1994 (aged 26)
2021
Sporting Kansas City
0
0
24
Evan Bush
GK
(1986-03-06 ) March 6, 1986 (aged 35)
2021
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
0
0
28
Matt Lampson
GK
(1989-09-06 ) September 6, 1989 (aged 31)
2020
LA Galaxy
16
0
Defenders
3
Josh Williams
CB , RB, LB
(1988-04-18 ) April 18, 1988 (aged 32)
2017
Toronto FC
142
9
4
Jonathan Mensah
CB
(1990-07-13 ) July 13, 1990 (aged 30)
2017
Anzhi Makhachkala
100
3
5
Vito Wormgoor (INT)
DF
(1988-11-16 ) November 16, 1988 (aged 32)
2020
SK Brann
2
0
14
Waylon Francis
LB
(1990-09-20 ) September 20, 1990 (aged 30)
2019
Seattle Sounders FC
104
0
17
Marlon Hairston
LB
(1994-03-23 ) March 23, 1994 (aged 27)
2021
Minnesota United FC
0
0
19
Milton Valenzuela
LB
(1998-08-13 ) August 13, 1998 (aged 22)
2019
Newell's Old Boys
49
1
24
Grant Lillard
CB
(1995-12-05 ) December 5, 1995 (aged 25)
2020
Inter Miami CF
0
0
25
Harrison Afful
RB
(1986-07-24 ) July 24, 1986 (aged 34)
2015
ES Tunis
138
6
30
Aboubacar Keita (HG)
CB , LB
(2000-04-06 ) April 6, 2000 (aged 19)
2019
Virginia Cavaliers
21
0
Midfielders
2
Perry Kitchen
CM
(1992-02-29 ) February 29, 1992 (aged 29)
2021
LA Galaxy
0
0
6
Darlington Nagbe
CM
(1990-07-19 ) July 19, 1990 (aged 30)
2019
Atlanta United FC
15
1
7
Pedro Santos (INT) (DP)
RM , LM, AM, RW , LW, LB
(1988-04-22 ) April 22, 1988 (aged 32)
2017
Braga
94
18
8
Artur
DM , AM, CM
(1996-03-11 ) March 11, 1996 (aged 25)
2018
São Paulo
108
2
10
Lucas Zelarayán (INT) (DP)
CM
(1992-06-20 ) June 20, 1992 (aged 28)
2020
UANL Tigres
16
6
12
Luis Díaz (INT)
RM , LM, RW
(1998-12-06 ) December 6, 1998 (aged 22)
2019
Herediano
34
2
16
Isaiah Parente (HG)
RM
(2000-03-16 ) March 16, 2000 (aged 21)
2021
Wake Forest
0
0
20
Alexandru Mățan (INT)
MF
(1999-04-29 ) April 29, 1999 (aged 21)
2021
FC Viitorul Constanta
0
0
21
Aidan Morris (HG)
MF
(2001-11-16 ) November 16, 2001 (aged 19)
2020
Indiana
10
0
22
Derrick Etienne
MF
(1996-11-25 ) November 25, 1996 (aged 24)
2020
New York Red Bulls
21
1
Forwards
9
Kevin Molino
ST
(1990-06-17 ) June 17, 1990 (aged 30)
2021
Minnesota United FC
0
0
11
Gyasi Zardes (DP)
ST
(1991-09-02 ) September 2, 1991 (aged 29)
2018
LA Galaxy
82
44
99
Bradley Wright-Phillips
ST
(1985-03-12 ) March 12, 1985 (aged 36)
2021
Los Angeles FC
0
0
Out on loan
18
Sebastian Berhalter (HG)
MF
(2001-05-10 ) May 10, 2001 (aged 19)
2020
North Carolina
9
0
27
Miguel Berry
FW
(1997-09-16 ) September 16, 1997 (aged 23)
2020
San Diego Toreros
0
0
Non-competitive
Preseason
Competitive
MLS
Standings
Source:
MLS Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) total wins; 3) total goal differential; 4) total goals scored; 5) fewer disciplinary points; 6) away goal differential; 7) away goals scored; 8) home goals differential; 9) home goals scored; 10) coin toss (2 clubs tied) or drawing of lots (≥3 clubs tied)
Notes:
Overall table
Source:
MLS Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) total wins; 3) total goal differential; 4) total goals scored; 5) fewer disciplinary points; 6) away goal differential; 7) away goals scored; 8) home goals differential; 9) home goals scored; 10) coin toss (2 clubs tied) or drawing of lots (≥3 clubs tied)
(V) Canadian Championship winner
Notes:
Results summary
Overall
Home
Away
Pld
Pts
W
L
T
GF
GA
GD
W
L
T
GF
GA
GD
W
L
T
GF
GA
GD
34
47
13
13
8
46
45
+1
10
4
3
33
23
+10
3
9
5
13
22
−9
Source: MLS standings
Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won; T = Matches tied; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference
Results by round
Round 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 Stadium H A H A A A H H A A H A H H A A H H A A H H A A H A H A H A H H A H Result D D W L L W W W L D D D W D W L L L L L L W L L W D W L W D L W W W
Match results
On March 10, 2021 the league announced the home openers for every club, with Columbus playing Philadelphia Union at Historic Crew Stadium .
U.S. Open Cup
On July 20, US Soccer finally announced that the tournament would be cancelled for 2021 and would resume in 2022.[ 7]
Qualifying
On March 29, 2021, US Soccer announced that qualification for MLS clubs would be determined by the highest number of regular season points per game at the conclusion of the first three weeks of MLS play (April 16 – May 4).[ 8]
CONCACAF Champions League
Round of 16
Columbus Crew SC v Real Estelí
Quarter-finals
Monterrey v Columbus Crew SC
Campeones Cup
Statistics
Appearances and goals
Under "Apps" for each section, the first number represents the number of starts, and the second number represents appearances as a substitute.
Disciplinary record
Clean sheets
Transfers
In
Pos.
Player
Transferred from
Fee/notes
Date
Source
GK
Evan Bush
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Trade in exchange for $125,000 in General Allocation Money.
December 14, 2020
[ 9]
FW
Bradley Wright-Phillips
Los Angeles FC
Free agent.
December 23, 2020
[ 10]
MF
Kevin Molino
Minnesota United FC
Free agent.
January 7, 2021
[ 11]
GK
Eric Dick
Sporting Kansas City
Selected in Stage 2 of the MLS Re-Entry Draft.
January 8, 2021
[ 12]
MF
Isaiah Parente
Wake Forest
Signed as a Homegrown Player.
January 11, 2021
[ 13]
MF
Perry Kitchen
LA Galaxy
Free agent.
January 28, 2021
[ 14]
MF
Marlon Hairston
Minnesota United FC
Free agent.
March 3, 2021
[ 15]
MF
Alexandru Mățan
Viitorul Constanţa
Reported $1,800,000 transfer fee. Acquired under the MLS U-22 initiative.
March 8, 2021
[ 16]
DF
Saad Abdul-Salaam
FC Cincinnati
Waivers.
April 17, 2021
[ 17]
FW
Erik Hurtado
CF Montreal
Trade in exchange for $200,000 in 2021 General Allocation Money.
July 8, 2021
[ 18]
DF
Steven Moreira
Toulouse FC
Free agent.
August 23, 2021
[ 19]
Loan in
Pos.
Player
Loaned from
Division
Length/Notes
Beginning
End
Source
MF
Liam Fraser
Toronto FC
MLS
Columbus Crew SC sent $50,000 in 2021 General Allocation Money (GAM).
May 3, 2021
December 11, 2021
[ 20]
SuperDraft
The following players were selected by Columbus in the MLS SuperDraft.
Out
Pos.
Player
Transferred to
Fee/notes
Date
Source
GK
Andrew Tarbell
Austin FC
Option declined.
December 14, 2020
[ 22]
MF
Fatai Alashe
Sacramento Republic
Option declined.
December 14, 2020
[ 22]
MF
Emmanuel Boateng
New England Revolution
Option declined.
December 14, 2020
[ 22]
MF
Youness Mokhtar
ADO Den Haag
Option declined.
December 14, 2020
[ 22]
FW
Jordan Hamilton
Indy Eleven
Option declined.
December 14, 2020
[ 22]
FW
Krisztián Németh
Debreceni VSC
Option declined.
December 14, 2020
[ 22]
MF
Hector Jiménez
Austin FC
Out of contract.
December 14, 2020
[ 22]
FW
Fanendo Adi
Minnesota United FC
Out of contract.
December 14, 2020
[ 22]
GK
Jon Kempin
D.C. United
Trade for third-round pick in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft .
January 8, 2021
[ 23]
MF
Chris Cadden
Hibernian
Undisclosed
January 15, 2021
[ 22]
GK
Matt Lampson
Hartford Athletic
Waived.
August 25, 2021
[ 24]
Loans out
Pos.
Player
Loanee club
Division
Length/Notes
Beginning
End
Source
MF
Sebastian Berhalter
Austin FC
MLS
Columbus Crew SC acquires $50,000 in 2021 General Allocation Money (GAM). The Crew will receive $50,000 in Allocation Money if Berhalter meets certain performance conditions in 2021. Austin FC retains the option to trade for the rights on a permanent basis.
March 3, 2021
December 11, 2021
[ 25]
GK
Eric Dick
Indy Eleven
USL Championship
Columbus Crew loans goalkeeper Eric Dick to USL's Indy Eleven on June 24, 2021. Columbus retains the right to terminate the loan at any time.
June 24, 2021
December 11, 2021
[ 26]
Kits
Type
Shirt
Shorts
Socks
Home
White
Gold
Gold
Away
Black
Black
Black
See also
Notes
References
^ "Columbus Crew updates crest and brand marks for the Black & Gold | Columbus Crew" .
^ Myers, Jacob (May 17, 2021). "After fans revolt, it's 'Columbus Crew' once again. The logo's altered, too" . The Columbus Dispatch . Retrieved May 18, 2021 .
^ Campbell, Associated Press l Falycia (June 19, 2021). "Columbus Crew win big in final game at Historic Crew Stadium" . WSYX . Retrieved June 22, 2021 .
^ Myers, Jacob (March 24, 2021). "It's a date: new Crew Stadium will open July 3 against New England" . The Columbus Dispatch . Retrieved March 24, 2021 .
^ "Columbus Crew president: New stadium won't open until summer of 2021" . mlssoccer.com. June 7, 2019.
^ "Roster" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Retrieved April 14, 2021 .
^ "SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED FOR NEXT EDITION OF LAMAR HUNT U.S. OPEN CUP IN 2022" . ussoccer.com . July 20, 2021. Retrieved July 20, 2021 .
^ "MLS qualification procedure for 2021 US Open Cup revealed" . MLSsoccer.com . Retrieved April 15, 2021 .
^ Crew SC Communications (December 24, 2020). "Columbus Crew SC acquires goalkeeper Evan Bush via trade with Vancouver Whitecaps FC" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Columbus Crew SC. Retrieved December 24, 2020 .
^ Crew SC Communications (December 24, 2020). "Columbus Crew SC signs free agent forward Bradley Wright-Phillips" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Columbus Crew SC. Retrieved December 24, 2020 .
^ Crew SC Communications (January 7, 2021). "Columbus Crew SC signs winger Kevin Molino from free agency" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Columbus Crew SC. Retrieved January 7, 2021 .
^ Crew SC Communications (January 8, 2021). "Columbus Crew SC signs 2020 MLS Re-Entry Draft selection goalkeeper Eric Dick" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Columbus Crew SC. Retrieved January 12, 2021 .
^ Crew SC Communications (January 11, 2021). "Columbus Crew SC signs Academy product and midfielder Isaiah Parente" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Columbus Crew SC. Retrieved January 12, 2021 .
^ Crew SC Communications (January 28, 2021). "Columbus Crew SC signs free agent midfielder Perry Kitchen" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Columbus Crew SC. Retrieved January 30, 2021 .
^ Crew SC Communications (March 3, 2021). "Columbus Crew SC signs free agent defender Marlon Hairston" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Columbus Crew SC. Retrieved March 4, 2021 .
^ "SIGNED | Columbus Crew SC acquires midfielder Alexandru Matan from Romanian side FC Viitorul Constanta" . Columbus Crew SC . March 8, 2021. Archived from the original on March 9, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021 .
^ "Columbus Crew SC signs defender Saad Abdul-Salaam from MLS Waiver List" . columbuscrew.com . MLS. April 17, 2021. Retrieved December 5, 2021 .
^ "Columbus Crew acquires forward Erik Hurtado in trade with CF Montreal" . Columbus Crew SC . July 8, 2021. Archived from the original on July 8, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021 .
^ "Columbus Crew signs French defender Steven Moreira" . Columbus Crew SC . August 21, 2021. Archived from the original on August 23, 2021. Retrieved September 30, 2021 .
^ Tom Bogert (May 3, 2021). "Columbus Crew acquire Liam Fraser on loan from Toronto FC" . Major League Soccer . Retrieved May 3, 2021 .
^ a b "Columbus Crew SC selects two players in MLS SuperDraft 2021" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Retrieved January 21, 2021 .
^ a b c d e f g h i Crew SC Communications (December 24, 2020). "Core of 2020 MLS Cup-winning Columbus Crew SC roster to return in 2021" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Retrieved December 24, 2020 .
^ Jonathan Sigal (January 8, 2021). "Jon Kempin traded from Columbus Crew SC to DC United for SuperDraft pick" . mlssoccer.com . Retrieved December 5, 2021 .
^ "Columbus Crew waive goalkeeper Matt Lampson" . mlssoccer.com . August 25, 2021. Retrieved December 5, 2021 .
^ Crew SC Communications (March 3, 2021). "Columbus Crew SC sends midfielder Sebastian Berhalter on loan" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Retrieved March 4, 2021 .
^ Crew SC Communications (June 24, 2021). "Columbus Crew Loan Goalkeeper Eric Dick to Indy Eleven" . ColumbusCrewSC.com . Retrieved July 8, 2021 .
Club Stadiums Affiliated clubs Culture Rivalries Key personnel Championships Seasons
National teams
League competitions (Men)
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Amateur Collegiate
League competitions (Women)
Cup competitions (Men)
Domestic International Friendly
Cup competitions (Women) Youth competitions (Men)