Montreal stuns Columbus Crew in Ohio to grab all three points in MLS action

CF Montreal pulled off an upset in Ohio, beating Columbus Crew 1-2 at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field in an MLS clash that left both sides level near the bottom of the Eastern Conference table. The Canadian club struck early, was pegged back by an own goal, and ultimately walked away with all three points thanks to a stunning strike from outside the box late in the match.

A blazing start and a late-match reward

The match was just 4 minutes old when Prince Owusu put the visitors ahead with a right-footed finish from the center of the box, following a through ball from Hennadii Synchuk. Columbus Crew, who had come out looking to take control, responded quickly, and in the 19th minute found the equalizer in the least expected way: an own goal by Thomas Gillier made it 1-1.

That was the score at halftime, capping a first half with chances at both ends but no real clarity. In the second half, Montreal stayed patient even as the home side controlled possession, and got its reward in the 77th minute: Noah Streit, capping off a well-executed counterattack and assisted by Brayan Vera, unleashed a right-footed shot from outside the area that flew into the top corner to make it 1-2, the final score. Columbus pushed hard in stoppage time with several headers off corner kicks, but couldn't find a way to equalize again.

The numbers behind the result

Columbus Crew controlled possession and the passing game, but it was Montreal that produced the more dangerous shots and proved more clinical with less of the ball.

That gap in shots on target is also reflected in the match's estimated xG, calculated after the fact based on shot location: 0.57 for Columbus Crew compared to 1.44 for CF Montreal, a figure that backs up the idea that the visitors were sharper in the final third despite seeing less of the ball.

A result that ran counter to the preview

The preview we published gave Columbus Crew heavy favoritism, with a 57% chance of victory against just 20% for Montreal and 23% for a draw, with expected goals of 2.06 for the home side against 1.16 for the visitors. What happened on the field was almost the exact opposite: the underdog took control both on the scoreboard and in terms of clear chances, proving that the pregame forecast didn't hold up against Canadian efficiency.

What the result means for the standings

Both teams had arrived level on points within the Eastern Conference group, and the result did nothing to change that closeness: per the league's tracking, Columbus Crew have 20 points from 20 matches played (5 wins, 5 draws and 10 losses), while CF Montreal also sit on 20 points from 20 matches (5 wins, 5 draws and 10 losses), with a slightly worse goal difference. The points gap between the two remains at 0, making this win an important symbolic boost for Montreal as it tries to climb the table, while Columbus Crew will need to regroup quickly after letting slip the momentum it had built with the equalizer.