In their last three encounters with Toronto FC, Columbus Crew SC has prevailed 2-1. Before this run, Columbus had won just two of its previous 14 meetings with the Reds, including playoff games, from the beginning of 2016 to the present (D5 L7).
With a 1-1 draw at Atlanta on Saturday, Toronto FC ended a six-match losing streak that began last year. Since dropping five consecutive games at BMO Field in March-May 2012, the Reds have not lost three consecutive home games in all competitions. They lost their final two games at home last season.
Columbus defeated D. C. United 2-0 at home on Saturday to earn its first victory of the season. Following each of the club’s 10 victories in the previous season, the Crew played to a draw in 2022, going without a win for the entire season.
Federico Bernardeschi scored Toronto’s solitary objective in its 1-1 draw with Atlanta on Saturday, his subsequent straight game with an objective. Jozy Altidore scored in each of Toronto’s first four MLS games in 2019, despite missing the team’s first game that year. Only one player has scored in each of Toronto’s first three games.
In Saturday’s 2-0 victory over D.C. United, Lucas Zelarayan scored both goals on five attempts, while Cucho Hernandez took six shots. In the Crew’s first two matches this year, Zelarayan and Hernandez have made 17 of the 19 shots they have attempted (A. Matan and J. Russel-Rowe have made 1 each).
