NYCFC escape Crew with tie, second seed
For two minutes, New York City FC’s playoff destination remained unknown.
Captain David Villa, who scored two goals earlier in Sunday’s 2-2 draw against the Columbus Crew, stepped up to take a penalty kick after video-assisted review overturned referee Ismail Elfath’s initial corner-kick call. Villa could have sealed a win with a hat trick, but Columbus goalkeeper Zack Steffen guessed right and stuffed the league MVP candidate.
It was a moment that seemed to pause Citi Field, where NYCFC played its final home match after relocating for the second time this season, but in the end, it just served as only a small worry as NYCFC’s draw was enough on to seal second-place in the East and a first-round bye in the MLS playoffs.
The match in front of a crowd of 20,113 felt like a playoff game — and according to head coach Patrick Vieira, it was a testament to just how strong the Eastern Conference is this season.
“We had a really good game plan,” said Vieira, who credited Columbus’ level of play. “We wanted to press [Columbus] high and put them under pressure. We wanted to make them make mistakes and [Columbus] managed to play through it sometimes.”
Like in the 11th minute when Columbus scored the opening goal after forward Ola Kamara perfectly timed his run and connected on an unmarked cross. That initial lead left Citi Field stunned, but NYCFC answered seven minutes later when Villa scored on a header off a corner kick. From then on, NYCFC dictated the pace of play in the first half (58 percent possession) while quick link-up play between Villa, Jack Harrison and Yangel Herrera kept Columbus’ back line on its heels. Just before the halftime whistle, Villa pushed NYCFC ahead when Steffen misjudged his bouncing shot that hopped right over him.
With Columbus driving NYCFC deep, ex-NYCFC defender Josh Williams converted a header in the 58th minute, putting the NYCFC’s playoff location into uncertainty with Atlanta United leading Toronto FC at the time.
In the end, NYCFC prevailed to see the draw. NYCFC now await the highestseeded winning team from the Knockout round. The first leg of the conference semifinals will be Oct. 30 or 31, with the home leg at Yankee Stadium on Nov. 5.