Columbus Crew 2 Goals:
New York City FC II Goals: Carrizo 21’, Arroyave 78’
Quick Read
New York City FC II claimed a 2-0 win against Columbus Crew 2 on Sunday. Máximo Carrizo opened the scoring in the 22nd minute with a delightful chip over the goalkeeper. Jacob Arroyave added a second in the 78th minute to seal a big win for City in MLS NEXT Pro.
Match Recap
A trip to the Buckeye State was next on the calendar for New York City FC II as they sought to cap off a memorable week in style against Columbus Crew 2.
City were riding high after a midweek victory over Hartford Athletic in the U.S. Open Cup, and they knew a win in Columbus could put them in the top six of the Eastern Conference.
Head Coach Matt Pilkington made three changes to the side that took on Hartford on Wednesday. In came goalkeeper Alex Rando, defender Chris Tiao, and midfielder Jake Rozhansky in place of Tomás Romero, Christian McFarlane, and Piero Elias.
New York City started the game the better of the two sides and registered their first major chance in the 12thminute.
Good work by Jonathan Jiménez on the right-hand side of the box allowed him to send in a bouncing cross that required an intervention from Crew goalkeeper Stanislav Lapkes.
Lapkes could only parry the delivery, however, and there wanting for the rebound was Máximo Carrizo – Crew defender Jackson Lindimore clearing the ball off the line.
City’s high press was proving successful at disrupting the Crew’s rhythm when building out from the back.
In the 17th minute, good work by Jiménez saw him regain possession on the left. Given the chance to drive inside toward goal he then fired off a shot that only narrowly went wide.
A goal did not seem far away, and the deadlock was finally broken in the 21st minute thanks to a well-taken finish from Carrizo.
The teenager intercepted a loose pass on the edge of the penalty area and produced a brilliant first-time finish that floated over a diving Lapkes and into the empty net.
The Crew promptly went in search of an equalizer and thought they had grounds for a penalty after Cole Mrowka went down in the box in the 27th minute. The referee did not agree, however, and promptly awarded New York City FC II a freekick.
Pilkington opted to start the second half with one change – Carrizo being replaced by midfielder Jacob Arroyave.
City continued to pile on the pressure and that saw an early turnover from the Crew inside their defensive third.
This time Taylor Calheira was the beneficiary, but his attempt at goal was blocked and deflected behind for a corner.
Jiménez would be the next City player to test the goalkeeper after latching onto a through ball from Ronald Arévalo. Despite getting his first time shot on target he was denied by Lapkes.
Pilkington’s second change of the afternoon saw Elias replace Jonathan Shore in the 73rd minute.
New York City would add a second goal in the 77th minute as Arroyave added his name to the scoresheet.
A move instigated by some impressive work from Calheira near the byline, his pullback found Arroyave in a crowded penalty area and the substitute calmly stroked it home.
Columbus were keen to halve City’s advantage and that saw Rando called into action in injury time to deny Jayden Da with a brilliant diving save down to his right.
That would prove to be the final notable act of the contest and confirmed a 2-0 victory for City – a result that capped off a brilliant week for Pilkington and his players.
How We Lined Up
What's Next
Next up for New York City FC II is a meeting with Crown Legacy on Sunday, April 28. Kickoff at Belson Stadium is set for 7:30PM ET.
