Columbus Crew’s quest for MLS Cup ends in 1-0 loss to Colorado Rapids – MLS News
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Colorado-Rapids-c38849 at d**k’s Sporting Goods Park on Thursday, October 27.
The Crew remained superior to the Rapids for most the playing time but failed to finish in the final third and lost the game because of a single mistake in defence.
“We had control of the game, we had the ball, we had the chances and we came close to scoring,” forward http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Andrés-c5845 Mendoza said through a translator. “The other team only took advantage of one mistake and scored. We were superior. They came out just to run,
and we came out to play soccer.
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Kosuke-Kimura-c21353 found the Jamaican striker in front of the goal and fed him with a low pass that the forward easily ushered into the netting to take the lead.
The Crew were furiously looking for an equalizer in the second half but the Rapids’ strong defence kept the likes of Mendoza and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Robbie-Rogers-c31217 at bay.
One of the reasons for the lacklustre play by the 2008 MLS Cup winners was the poor starting line-up. Instead of inserting Mendoza in the starting eleven, head coach http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Danny-c10193 O’Rourke. However, O’Rourke pulled himself
out of the starting line-up for http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Kevin-Burns-c20709.
Moreover, midfielder Rogers was surprisingly given the nod instead of regular striker, Emilio Renteria, in the 4-5-1 formation.
The same Rapids thrashed the Fighting http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Canaries-c38723 in last year’s Conference semi-finals on penalty shootouts, however, the Crew could not stretch the game to the same situation, thanks to Cummings’ goal.
Warzycha lamented the loss, regretting the chances his men missed in the run of play and the defensive shortcomings that resulted in the loss.
“It was unfortunate that we hit the crossbar with Mendoza’s shot,” Warzycha said. “You look at the game we played against them two months ago a 2-0 loss, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Brian-Mullan-c8061 takes the shot from the same spot and scores. That’s the game.”
The Rapids, on the other hand, now face Sporting Kansas City in the two-legged semi-final at d**k’s Sporting Goods and LIVESTRONG Sporting Park on October 30 and November 2 respectively.
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