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News, Blog and GuidesThe semi-finals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup concludes on Wednesday night at Estadio BBVA.
William GittinsWillGittUpdate: May 1st, 2024 18:30 EDT0
David Leah
CF Monterrey host Columbus Crew on Wednesday night in the second leg of their CONCACAF Champions Cup semi-final. The Crew hold a one-goal lead from the first encounter but they face a tough task at Estadio BBVA.
The Crew stormed to an MLS Cup triumph in 2023 and have continued head coach Wilfried Nancy’s swashbuckling style of play this season. They have beaten Houston Dynamo and Tigres UANL on their way to the final four of the CONCACAF competition.
However they now face a trip to Monterrey, who finished top of Liga MX Clausura last season and have the experience and the firepower to cause Columbus major problems. It proved too much for Inter Miami in the last round, as Monterrey strolled to a 5-1 aggregate victory over Lionel Messi and co.
One Crew. One Mission. pic.twitter.com/20G7BTTTQY
— The Crew (@ColumbusCrew) May 1, 2024
Columbus Crew team news to face Monterrey
As is the case with most MLS teams, the Crew cannot compete with Monterrey in terms of squad depth. The league’s salary restrictions prevent MLS clubs from building deep rosters but Wilfried Nancy will be delighted to have almost his entire squad available for the second leg.
The only confirmed absentee is veteran goalkeeper Evan Bush, who is very much the back-up to Patrick Schulte. Nancy rested a number of key players in the MLS draw against CF Montreal. The likes of Cucho Hernandez, Diego Rossi, Yaw Yeboah and Steven Moreira were only used off the bench. Rudy Camacho and Darlington Nagbe did not feature, allowing them to rest their aging legs ahead of the trip to Monterrey.
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Cucho Hernandez was on the scoresheet in Columbus’ first leg victory.JASON MOWRYAFP
“This is a 50-50 game,” Wilfried Nancy told reporters on Tuesday. “We play for the final and at this level, it’s all about details. This is not about how we’re going to play, what we’re going to do. It’s details and also the mental aspect. We know what we have to do and also what they have to do.”
What happens if there’s a tie in the CONCACAF Champions Cup?
The Crew hold a slender 2-1 lead from the first leg, meaning that they will progress to the final if they can avoid defeat on Wednesday. Monterrey need to win by two clear goals, something that they are more than capable of doing, to book their place in the final by the end of regular time.
Things get more complicated if Monterrey win the second leg by a single goal, leaving the aggregate scores level after 180 minutes of action. In this instance the ‘away goals rule’ will come into play, meaning that whichever team has scored more in their away fixture will progress.
