Columbus vs LAFC in the MLS Cup final is a dream matchup for neutrals. One of the easiest to love clubs in MLS history vs one of the easiest to hate - both with their own respective starpower and coaching intricacies.
Saturday’s matchup at Lower.com field in Columbus will bring very real fireworks off and on the pitch. Not only are these clubs loved and hated, but their playstyles are polar opposites. One side demanding a strict adherence to possess the ball at all costs, while the other is happy to give it away.
What will happen on Saturday is a clash between two of the best, most deserving, and most interesting teams in Major League Soccer.
Let’s cover:
Why LAFC is going to have trouble earning a back-to-back MLS Cup
The tactics that make this such an interesting matchup
How to best watch and enjoy this masterpiece in the making
LAFC have only lost one match in their last 12. They come in as one of the most inform squads in the league, and are fighting for a back-to-back MLS Cup after Gareth Bale defied gravity to break Philadelphian hearts last year.
This team is led by one of the most intriguing coaches in MLS - Steve Cherundolo. Now… I’m old enough to remember Cherundolo as one of the most consistent and competent fullbacks to ever don the stars and stripes, but I think it’s safe to say he has more than earned his place in the conversation for best American managers. The only thing is… his teams play quite a basic way, and it has been stated multiple times from club insiders that Cherundolo doesn’t really handle the intricacies of day-to-day squad management like training, which he leaves to his assistants.
Taking all of that into account, I actually think what that tells us is a good thing for Cherundolo, that he doesn’t need to be the smartest or most important person in the room, he just needs to bring together the best and brightest to help the team win.
A personality like that that can put the club before themselves, and set a similar tone for his players is actually a huge benefit to his players. I’m not saying he doesn’t do anything, it’s obvious his impact is felt across the club. He has consistently set the correct starting XI and matchplans to get winning results.
I mentioned a basic tactic, and that probably doesn’t give him or LAFC enough credit, but compared to Wilfred Nancy’s Columbus it’s like comparing the Bar exam with the SAT. I’ll get to Nancy in a second…
LAFC play in a 4-3-3 where the midfield 3 is made up of a 6 (Ilie Sanchez), an 8 (Kellyn Acosta), and an attacking 8/10 (Timothy Tillman). In attack they leave danger man and MLS MVP runner-up Denis Bouanga wide-left to try and terrorize defenses with his runs in behind, while Carlos Vela and Cristian Olivera create triangles with Tillman to exploit the space on the right.
Giorgio Chiellini has found his fitness throughout the season and marshalls the backline who stay in a pretty tight 4 back when in possession.
When I say a tactic is simple, it doesn’t mean that it’s bad, in fact quite the contrary. If we put it all together, you have a manager who gets the starting XI and substitutes mostly right, you have a team of very talented players playing a simple way where they don’t have to do much thinking and can play freely, and well… you have a recipe for success, which is exactly what LAFC is achieving. However… Wilfred Nancy’s Columbus Crew have just the style of play to suffocate a team like LAFC. Let me explain.
I’m going to go through this quickly because I actually did a full breakdown of Nancy’s Crew earlier in the season which I will put at the end of the this so you can watch the full length but here are the cliff notes.
Columbus play a 3-4-3 with attacking full backs and defend with one of the best midfield duos in MLS in Aiden Morris and Darlington Nagbe. Juan ‘Cucho’ Hernandez leads the line and has been aided by the former LAFC player, left winger Diego Rossi finding incredible form.
Columbus and Wilfred Nancy are to MLS what Spurs and Ange Postecoglou are to the Premier League. An unrelenting possession and pressing style that is played no matter the opponent. The transcripts of Nancy and Postecoglou interviews are damn near interchangeable, both are on the record saying they were happy that their defenders made a mistake playing out of the back because they were being brave and playing the way he wanted them to play.
That is the level of commitment to this style and structure that we are dealing with in Columbus. Nancy’s men will look to possess the ball, recycle through their back three when no passing lanes are open, and will hold the ball in that defensive line until they pull LAFC out of their defensive shape. I’ve seen some of the oddest behavior in my time watching soccer when I’ve peered into Columbus Crew matches. Sometimes the Columbus centerbacks will just put the ball under their cleat and stand on it until an attacker starts to press. It’s awesome.
“It was all about attracting pressure, playing through it. Try and combine, try and create that little extra bit of time for my teammate. To hold the ball, to keep the ball, to recognize the moment when you pass the ball and free up space.”
There is no denying that there is a bit of starlet syndrome happening with Columbus and Wilfred Nancy. Nancy is endearing and easy to like, and the team plays with such brave brilliance that it’s hard to not root for someone staying so committed to their cause.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Columbus ended this match with more than 70% possession, but I actually don’t think LAFC will care. You see this is where things get really interesting…
Columbus will be at home. They will have the ball. They will also be open for exploitation.
In LAFC’s last five matches, they have not once had more than 50% possession, and yet they’ve won four and drawn one. Columbus will suffocate LAFC with the ball, but LAFC is deadly when they catch a breath.
I can’t predict the future, but I think this will be one of the best, most competitive MLS Cup finals in history, and that’s saying a lot following up from last year’s incredible game.
Drop your predictions in the comments down below, and if you want a deeper dive into exactly how Columbus suffocates their opponents and scored the 2nd most goals in MLS this season, watch this video next.