Champions League is Here

By Gary L. Moody Jr.

COLUMBUS, OH - August 18, 2010 - The Columbus Crew are becoming quite good at balancing a tight schedule as the club is a serious contender for four pieces of hardware: the U.S. Open Cup, the Supporters' Shield, the CONCACAF Champions League, and of course the MLS Cup. Wednesday night started their journey into the Champions League competition as the Crew defeated Municipal, champions of the Guatemalan First Division, 1-0 at Crew Stadium.

Crew Head Coach Robert Warzycha fielded a competitive squad that included regular starters and the likes of "super sub" Jason Garey, speedy Emmanuel Ekpo, and keeper Andy Gruenebaum, who is regarded as one of the best backup goalkeepers in the league. It was an opportunity to give players some minutes, provide rest for ailing starters, and still be a force to be reckoned with.

Ekpo would start the game with a flourish, threatening the Municipal keeper 5 minutes in with a bit of flashy play. He would be denied the goal, but that wouldn't be the case in the 14th as he put the Crew up 1-0 with spectacular individual play. Assisted by captain Frankie Hejduk, Ekpo was able to put together a collection of moves, going out and around the Municipal defenders to score the first goal of the match.

Municipal keeper Jaime Penedo would continue to be under pressure by the Crew attack. Jason Garey made quite a run in the 17th minute, but was taken down in the box without a call. Penedo would respond with an assortment of saves in the 18th, 30th, and 32nd minutes as the hometown Crew pushed forward early and often. Halftime would come with little fanfare as the Crew held their 1-0 lead. The legendary Guatemalan club still found themselves in the game thanks to an MVP-type performance by their keeper, who had four saves in the first half. Municipal could have faced a much deeper deficit going into the second half without Penedo's solid play in goal.

Municipal would make two substitutes at the half, hoping to change the momentum of the match. Gruenebaum would be forced to make a quick save just a few minutes in as the Reds started the attack. Garey and Schelotto would link up for a nice run in the 50th minute, but the play was broken up before a legitimate scoring opportunity could be had.

The pressure on Municipal continued in the 59th as Penedo got a hand on a shot, which resulted in a Schelotto corner kick. Hejduk would take a shot of his own moments later, but it landed squarely in the hands of the keeper.

The legendary Guillermo Barros Schelotto would have quite an opportunity in the 61st minute, receiving a perfect pass with space to work. Schelotto took the uncontested shot with considerable power, but it drifted up and over the bar. Chad Marshall would follow up with a narrow miss off a header during some seriously physical play in the box.

The Crew would continue their aggressive push forward in the 70th as Eddie Gaven's shot went just wide of the goal. The always dangerous Emilio Renteria would enter the match in place of Adam Moffat in the 70th. Columbus would continue to commit lots of players forward in the attack, creating lots of opportunities.

Gaven would make another run at the goal in the 77th, but got tangled up with the Los Rojos keeper. The Crew's dominance continued even though the scoreboard showed just a 1-0 lead for the Crew.

Ekpo took a hard challenge in the 82nd, but it did not warrant a call from referee Roberto Garcia. He would be subbed off for Leandre Griffit a moment later. A heated conversation between Renteria and Garcia would result in a yellow card in the 86th, but the very physical play continued.

The Crew closed out the final minutes of the game with little suspense and no change in the score. Clearly it was a good start to the competition for the Crew.

"I thought we created a pretty good amount of chances," Crew striker Jason Garey commented. "It could have been 2, 3, 4 for us. That is something we are going to work on, but we are just happy with three points."

The Crew return to MLS action this Saturday against the Colorado Rapids as they continue to maneuver through a crowded schedule. Columbus will then transition back to CCL play on August 24th as they head to Mexico to face Santos Laguna.

The sheer number of games in a short period of time is demanding for players, but definitely doable for the experienced Crew squad. "We can keep our own style, that's the way we like to play," Crew midfielder Adam Moffat stated. "If it's a battling game, we can battle. If it's a passing game, we can pass. We are quite versatile that way."

Columbus Crew Starting XI- GK Andy Gruenebaum, DEF Frankie Hejduk (C), DEF Andy Iro, DEF Chad Marshall, DEF Shaun Francis, MID Eddie Gaven, MID Adam Moffat, MID Danny O'Rourke, MID Emmanuel Ekpo, FWD Guillermo Barros Schelotto, FWD Jason Garey

Municipal Starting XI- GK Jaime Penedo, DEF Jaime Vides, DEF Pablo Melgar, DEF Yony Flores, DEF Pablo Soloranzo, MID Gustavo Cabrera, MID Cristian Noriega, MID Sergio Guevara, MID Gonzalo Romero (C), MID Guillermo Ramirez, FWD Mario Rodriguez

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