Pumas UNAM outlast Columbus Crew on penalties after thrilling draw

Columbus Crew and Pumas UNAM served up a match full of drama at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field, one that finished 1-1 after 90 minutes and had to be settled on penalties, where Pumas UNAM came out on top 1-1 (2). Tarun Karumanchi had put the hosts ahead in the first half, but Álvaro Angulo leveled things just before the break, and neither a second-half red card nor a flurry of substitutions could break the deadlock before the shootout.

The match is part of the ongoing knockout tie between the two clubs, and although the scoreline through 90 minutes ended level, it was from the penalty spot that the two sides decided who moves on in the competition.

How the match was decided

Columbus Crew started the better of the two sides and found an early reward: in the 8th minute, off a corner kick, Brais Méndez whipped in a precise cross that Tarun Karumanchi headed home from close range to make it 1-0. The goal capped a spell of home dominance, built on wide play and a steady stream of corners that kept the visitors' defense under pressure.

Pumas UNAM, though, did not fall behind for long and found their reward late in the first half. In the 44th minute, Uriel Antuna threaded a cross into the box that Álvaro Angulo finished with his right foot, low and inside the near post, to make it 1-1 at the break.

The second half offered fewer clear-cut chances despite opportunities on both ends, with both goalkeepers coming up big against shots from Luciano Herrera, Mohamed Farsi and Sean Zawadzki. Things got harder for the visitors in the 71st minute, when Luciano Herrera was sent off for fighting, leaving Pumas UNAM down to ten men for nearly 20 minutes of regulation time plus a lengthy stoppage-time period. Even so, the Mexican side held firm and kept Columbus Crew from finding a go-ahead goal, even as Kevin Gbamblé, Lautaro Giaccone and Dylan Chambost created chances deep into stoppage time.

With the score still tied at 1-1, the match went to penalties. There, Keylor Navas and Chase Adams opened the round by converting, but misses from Guillermo Martínez and Taha Habroune, paired with successful conversions from Pedro Vite, Lautaro Giaccone and Rudy Camacho, left the outcome down to the final kick. Rodrigo López's miss proved decisive: Pumas UNAM won the shootout 2-1 on converted penalties and advance in the knockout tie, eliminating Columbus Crew despite the home side's edge over long stretches of the match.

By the numbers

Columbus Crew controlled possession and produced more overall volume, though the two sides were evenly matched in terms of efficiency.

According to our post-match xG estimate, based on shot location, Columbus Crew generated 1.733 expected goals compared to 1.661 for Pumas UNAM, a razor-thin margin that underscores just how even the match was in terms of quality chances, despite the home side's edge in possession.

Our preview had pointed to a clear edge for Pumas UNAM, giving the visitors a 60% chance of winning compared to 18% for Columbus Crew and 22% for a draw, with expected goals of 2.25 for the Mexican side against 1.17 for the hosts. The way the match unfolded did not directly bear that out: Columbus Crew was the team that generated more and struck first, and the equalizer did not come until right at the end of the first half. Still, the final result ended up matching the projection, since Pumas UNAM were the team that advanced in the tie, even if getting there required a penalty shootout rather than clear control over the 90 minutes.

Takeaways

Columbus Crew can take some solace in having been the sharper team on the night, with more possession, more corners and more shots, but they were unable to turn that into a result on the scoreboard. For Pumas UNAM, advancing came only after overcoming the adversity of playing more than 20 minutes with a man down and needing the toughest possible route, a penalty shootout, to stay alive in the competition. In the MLS Eastern Conference standings, where this tie also plays out in parallel with the continental competition, Columbus Crew sit on 7 points from 3 games played, in second place in Group 1, just behind Charlotte FC on goal difference.