After a must win in Atlanta, where does the Crew stand with five games left? | OneFootball

What seemed like an easy, training ground type of game turned into a sweat it out until the last minute victory for the Crew in Atlanta. It was the highs and lows that symbolized the season to this point. Columbus looked dominate early after withstanding Atlanta's first 5-10 minute high energy pressure. Once that energy dissipated the Crew took control quickly, scoring all five of their goals within a 25 minute span in the first half (minute 14 opened the scoring and the barrage ended in minute 39). Rossi was on a hat trick, Wessam Abou Ali opened his account and much maligned signing Daniel Gazdag recorded two assists all by minute 39. Atlanta clawed one back just before halftime on a penalty kick but 5-1 at the half left the game in no doubt, at least that was the thought. Columbus must've still been in the locker room at the start of the second half when Atlanta netted two quick goals within the first five minutes (minutes 46 and 50). All of a sudden it's a 5-3 game and you're left wondering what is going on, kind of like back in May when Columbus was on a six game winless streak. Atlanta then pulled another back in the 88th minute and the Crew found themselves defending for their lives with eight minutes of stoppage time. Luckily they had enough grit to get it done, but it was not a convincing defensive effort and that will need to be resolved, especially with star defender Sean Zawadzki now out for multiple weeks. We won the game we needed to win, so what's next for the Crew in these last five games to secure their playoff spot?

Mid-week away game at New York City FC (9/17)

Another huge matchup on tap for Columbus tomorrow as they travel back to New York to take on NYCFC who currently sits in seventh position with a game in hand. Each of these last five games will be huge, but NYCFC sits two points back of the Crew so a loss here would push them ahead in the standings. If Columbus maintains ambition to host a first round playoff series this is a game they would need to win, although for playoff spot security earning a point on the back of a draw would suffice. Columbus is only four points behind Charlotte for third spot in the East, which would secure a home playoff, so a win in New York would go a long way in putting the Crew right back into the mix for top three in the conference. This will be a very difficult game, NYCFC is in good form right now winning four of their last five games, but they can be had at home given their two losses in the last five matches at Yankee stadium. New York City are a stingy bunch conceding only 33 goals on the season which is tied for first in the East. Their offense is not as potent however scoring 41 goals on the season putting them 10th amongst the 15 teams in the conference. This game feels like a draw, which would be fine, but if the defense tightened up just a bit it's a game Columbus could have.

Home against Toronto (9/20)

This game will be an absolute must win for Columbus. Toronto has officially been eliminated from the playoffs already and will have nothing to play for outside of potential experience for young players. They've not won a game in two months (last win on July 16, seven straight matches without a win) and have only one win in their last 10. That being said they are currently riding a streak of five consecutive draws (one of those was a 1-1 draw against Columbus last month). This team ranks tied for 14th in the conference in goals scored with 29 on the season, but their defense is their trademark allowing just 36 goals on the season which is fourth best in the East. In their last 10 games they've only conceded more than one goal twice. While Toronto will no doubt be playing for pride this is a game circled that Columbus must simply find a way to win.

Away at Chicago (9/27)

This game will be much tougher as Chicago is fighting for their playoff life. They currently sit in the wild card game two points ahead in the last playoff spot. Irony for them is they've won more games on the road (seven) than at home this season (five), with three of those home wins coming in their last five games. They're a bit of an erratic team that score in flurries and also concede just as easily. Their 54 goals scored on the season is second best in the East and their 53 goals conceded rank third worst. Last time the Crew saw their old rivals Chicago was the season opener where the Crew walked away a 4-2 winner. No doubt the Fire will be looking to exact revenge, it will be a tough game that could carry a lot of playoff implications. Getting a result in a pivotal game on the road against a bitter rival seems like a good way to secure a top four spot. It's a game the Crew will have more class, just a matter of if they put it together without letting the Fire get loose.

Away at Orlando City (10/4)

This game shapes up to be the toughest of the remaining games for Columbus. Orlando currently sits just one point behind the Crew in sixth place in the East. Any slip-up would surely have Orlando looking to jump Columbus in the standings. They've won their last two games at home by convincing margins, on top of that there is only one loss on their resume in their last six games. It'll be a tall order against the highest scoring team in the conference at 55 goals on the season with a scoring differential of +14 which is good enough for third best in the East. Their home record of 7-4-3 indicates they don't drop a lot of points at home, on the plus side two of those four losses have come in their last five home games. Columbus will be looking to atone for a 3-1 loss last time these two teams faced off at Lower.com field in late July. They'll need to be in top form if they are to take any points off this Orlando team, hopefully it'll be a day where the dish of revenge will be best served by Abou Ali.

Decision Day at home against NY Red Bulls (10/18)

I have a sense this will be a chaotic decision day and the Crew get a golden opportunity to exact revenge on the NY Red Bulls for knocking them out of the playoffs last season. Another rivalry game to end the regular season, Columbus may be presented with the opportunity to both improve their standing while simultaneously keeping the Red Bulls out of playoff contention. As it stands right now the Red Bulls are on the outside looking in sitting two points behind Chicago for the last playoff spot in the East. New York has had a very up and down campaign and recent form echoes that sentiment. They rode a three game win streak to close out May, since then they've won just three games out of their last 13 played. One of those games was a 0-0 draw against the Crew in Chicago on August 30. All that being said this game is a must win for Columbus, mostly because the Fire are an absolutely abysmal road team who has lost four straight away games and have easily the worst road record in the conference with a staggering 1-10-4 (w-l-t) record. Chicago is the only team in the conference with double digit road losses, which further proves why the Crew will need to take all three points here.

As we gear up for the playoff push in these last five games it's good to see the offense get on track in Atlanta. Abou Ali has a very high work rate up that created a ton of chaos in Atlanta. Gazdag looked a lot more at ease knowing he can play touch passes into a legit striker now and Rossi is much more comfortable now that he doesn't have to be "the guy" and can do what he does best which is play off a true number nine. Darlington Nagbe is back and looked very active and healthy, hopefully that form continues as the whole team seems at ease with him in the middle running the tempo. Biggest issue right now is the injury of Zawadzki and how that will impact the Crew's ability to keep teams from scoring. Cheberko is not the answer and has proven time and time again he's a liability on the back line. He does offer upside offensively, but with our front line clicking the way it did in Atlanta it'd be prudent to allow a more sound defender the opportunity to fill the central defender position. Overall this will be an exciting finish to the season and I am confident Columbus can finish top four now that Abou Ali seems to be much more comfortable in the team and can get that offense off the ground. If the defense can hold just a little bit we'll be in Lower.com for a playoff match in late October.