New York City FC will look to remain atop the Eastern Conference standings when they take on the Columbus Crew SC at MAPFRE Stadium Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
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NYCFC enter the match with 37 points, one in front of second-place Toronto FC, while the Crew are ninth with 19 points.
Despite their struggles, which include a current nine-match winless streak, Columbus is a team to be concerned about, according to NYCFC coach Patrick Vieira.
“They are not in a position where they are supposed to be with the way they play,” Vieira said. “They’ve been really unlucky with injuries, with some of the scenarios in games, but I really enjoy watching them play.”
NYCFC is coming off a 0-0 draw against the San Jose Earthquakes at Avaya Stadium last Friday night, improving their league-best road form to 6-4-2.
Maxime Chanot, who made his first NYCFC start, was named to the MLS Team of the Week after the draw.
“I’m happy about this, to be honest, but the most important is to try to play and get the three points back this week,” Chanot said.
The Crew SC fell to Toronto FC, 3-0, Saturday with Sebastian Giovinco netting the hat trick.
“We are not looking at the league table because the league table doesn’t tell us how well this team has been playing,” Vieira said.
This is the second of three matches between the Eastern Conference foes this season. On April 16, David Villa struck once in each half, but NYCFC fell to Columbus, 3-2, at MAPFRE Stadium. It was the Crew’s first win of the season. The third meeting is on the final day of the regular season – Oct. 23 at 4 p.m. at Yankee Stadium.
The teams met twice in a 10-day span a year ago with the Crew picking up a 2-1 win at Yankee Stadium after the teams played to a 2-2 draw in Columbus.
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“You have players who play really well between the lines, players who are really clever and players who can score goals,” Vieira said. “We will need to bring higher concentration. If not, it will be tough for us.”
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After playing six of seven games away from home, NYCFC returns to Yankee Stadium for a highly anticipated showdown with the LA Galaxy on August 20 at 3:30 p.m.
