Not only do the Columbus Crew face potential elimination when they host FC Cincinnati on Sunday, but a loss in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference’s best-of-three first-round series will also mean the end of midfielder Darlington Nagbe’s storied career.
The three-time MLS All-Star announced Oct. 7 that he would retire after the season, his 15th in the league.
“It’s weird for me. It doesn’t feel like my last season,” he said. “I don’t know why. I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been doing this for so long. It feels like it never ends.”
A 1-0 home win Monday brings No. 2 seed FC Cincinnati closer to the semifinals. If there is a third game, it will be November 8 in Cincinnati.
The Hell Is Real derby reached its climax in the 2023 semi-final when the Crew recovered from a 2-0 second-half deficit to score the winner in overtime.
The following week, Nagbe won his second MLS Cup with the Crew (2020). With championships for the Portland Timbers (2015) and Atlanta United (2018), he is one of four players to win at least four titles.
“We’re obviously going to push for our team and for our captain,” Columbus forward Diego Rossi said. “It’s going to be extra motivation.”
The Crew is in danger because it failed to contain Kevin Denkey, half of the dynamic duo alongside Evander (18 goals in the regular season). It was Denkey (15 goals) who finally broke through in the 78th minute after a rare defensive breakdown from the Crew.
Cincinnati coach Pat Noonan said there will be adjustments on both ends.
“I don’t think you can do the same thing and expect the same results,” he said. “Certainly you can talk about individual moments or duels that can change what a game looks like and be prepared and prepare ourselves for some slight adjustments because they watch it and we watch that game and review it, ‘What did we like, what did we not like?’ Then you try to think of some things they could adjust based on what they saw. »
–Field level media
