The Crew have the chance to advance to the CONCACAF Champions Cup semifinals for the first time in club history, the only team standing in the way is Tigres.
Last Tuesday, Columbus faced its Liga MX opponents in the first leg of the quarterfinal series and tied 1-1. With thar match taking place at Lower.com Field, Tigres have the tie-break advantage of an away goal.
Going on the road for the second leg, the Crew have to score at least one goal to avoid elimination. If the match ends tied 1-1 once again, the series will go into overtime with a possibility of penalty kicks if it remains tied after two periods of extra playing time.
If Columbus is able to secure a draw in which both teams score more than one goal, the Crew will win the series.
After receiving two yellow cards in the first game against Tigres, midfielder Aidan Morris is ineligible for this match, but defender Rudy Camacho and forward Alex Matan, who have been sidelined with injuries, made the trip to Mexico. There is a chance that either or both players are available today, though their status have yet to be confirmed.
Here’s what else to know before the Crew take on Tigres in the second leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup quarterfinals:
What time does Columbus Crew play Tigres?
Kickoff is set for 8:45 p.m. at Estadio Universitario in Monterrey, Mexico.
What channel is Columbus Crew vs. Tigres on?
The match will be on FS1. Streaming is available via the Fox Sports app. The Spanish broadcast will be on ViX.
How can I to listen to Columbus Crew vs. Tigres on the radio?
The broadcast of the match will be available on 105.7 FM. Chris Doran will be on the radio call. The Spanish radio broadcast will be available via 102.5 FM La Grande.
What is CONCACAF Champions Cup?
Champions Cup is an annual competition run by CONCACAF, the regional governing body in soccer for North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The tournament includes 27 teams from 10 countries.
Each round, up until the final, will include two legs (two games) and the winner will be determined by the aggregate score (the combined number of goals scored by the two teams).
The final will consist of one match, with the winner qualifying for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
How have Columbus Crew performed in past CONCACAF Champions Cups?
The Crew have appeared in five past iterations of Champions Cup, the most recent being in 2021, when they made it to the quarterfinals.
Each time the Crew have played in this competition, they have reached the quarterfinals, but never any further.
How did Columbus Crew make it to the quarterfinals?
After receiving a bye into the Round of 16 due to being MLS Cup champions, the Crew started their CONCACAF Champions Cup journey against Houston Dynamo.
With the first leg taking place on the road March 6, Columbus took a 1-0 aggerate goal advantage when forward Alex Matan scored a last-second goal toward the end of the match. Matan has been sidelined with a thigh injury since that game.
The Crew returned to Lower.com Field on March 12 for the second leg and took an early 1-0 lead over Houston in their second leg match off a Hernandez goal. Holding onto the lead for most of the match, Columbus would allow the Dynamo to score a penalty kick goal to tie the match 1-1, but still advanced to the quarterfinals with a 2-1 aggerate score.
How did Tigres make it to the quarterfinals?
Tigres started the competition in the Round of 32 against the Vancouver Whitecaps.
Tigres won the first 3-0 and the overall series 4-1.
In the Round of 16, Tigres took on Orlando SC. After tying the first leg on the road 0-0, Tigres defeated Orlando 4-2 at home to advance.
Since Tigres had the better goal differential against Orlando compared to Crew’s against Houston, Tigres was awarded home-field advantage in the second leg.
Who is Tigres?
Tigres is one of the teams participating in the CONCACAF Champions Cup from the Mexican-based Liga MX. In Columbus, Tigres is also known for being the team former Crew star Lucas Zelarayan played with before joining the MLS club.
With current scoring threats Juan Brunetta and Andre-Pierre Gignac, among others, Tigres is 7-3-3 and ranked fourth in Liga MX standings.
The club is based out of the Monterrey metropolitan area. Throughout its history, Tigres has won eight Liga MX championships and in 2020, won the CONCACAF Champions League.
Get more Columbus Crew content by listening to our podcasts
First appeared on www.dispatch.com