Crew breaks tie in stoppage time

The Columbus Crew peaked at the right time to stun the Dynamo on Wednesday night at Shell Energy Stadium.

Substitute Alexandru Matan scored in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time to give the Crew a 1-0 advantage in the first leg of a CONCACAF Champions Cup roundof-16 match. The second leg is at Columbus on Tuesday.

“The effort, the way we played for large stretches of that game, it’s a good performance against the best team in the league,” Dynamo coach Ben Olsen said. “Losing games like that late after the guys give so much for each other and for the fans, it hurts a little bit. But we’ll lick our wounds, and we’ll get back out there.”

The Crew gained an edge heading into next week’s second leg after Matan’s shot from the left side of the box off a setpiece pass from Aidan Morris deflected off Adalberto Carrasquilla and into the goal for his first score of the season.

Each team had a goal disallowed in the second half, Ethan Bartlow for the Dynamo and Christian Ramirez for the Crew.

Bartlow, who replaced Erik Sviatchenko in the 22nd minute due to an injury, generated a pair of scoring chances early in the second half. Amine Bassi’s volley off a Bartlow pass was deflected over the goal in the 58th minute.

A minute later, Bartlow apparently scored with a half-volley from inside the 18-yard box, but the goal was disallowed as Franco Escobar, who provided the assist, was caught offside.

With a regular-season game against Chicago Fire FC coming up Saturday, the Crew opted to bench multiple starters like last year’s MLS Cup MVP Cucho Hernandez and others. But the pairing of Aidan Morris and Darlington Nagbe, whom Olsen considers one of the best midfield duos in the league, remained in the lineup.

Morris proved Olsen right by dishing out an assist to Ramírez to give the Crew the lead in the 74th minute, but the goal was disallowed by the video assistant referee after the American forward was caught coming from an offside position to get the ball.

“It seemed like a game of waves,” Olsen said. “Both teams good at building the game and getting into the opposition’s half, creating chances. Again, you got to see some of that stuff out. We had plenty. They had plenty. and they ended up getting a deflection goal in the end that stings a little bit.”