Battle of Wills with no winners or losers, Sounders and the Crew | OneFootball

While the game ended in a draw, one of the obvious winners was Wilfried Nancy, the coach of the Columbus Crew. He showed his class when he demanded that the game be called after the serious injury to Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei.

Frei was taken off the field by ambulance as the players from both teams watched in shock and horror. With seconds left on the clock, a corner kick was awarded to the Crew, who had a chance to win the game in the final seconds.

Wilfried Nancy oozed pure class

Besides the prolonged stoppage increasing the possibility of injuries if play resumed the both coaches realized the impact on the players and asked for the game to be called. Even in professional sports, it is reassuring to see humanity take the foreground and for people to do the right thing. Wilfried Nancy not only agreed to end the game, but also, initiated the conversation with the official, as Brian Schmetzer concurred, and the match concluded as a draw.

Stefan Frei suffered a head/neck injury in an incidental collision with a player from the Crew on a corner kick. As Frei lay motionless on the field the impact could be seen immediately by the players, fans, coaches and for those watching the game from afar.

It was reassuring when he was seen moving, and Frei sent out a message last evening thanking everyone for their support. According to Schmetzer, he is fine, but only time will tell how long it will take him to recover. Head injuries are scary in that regard; some recoveries take a matter of minutes, others months. Regardless, as Christian Roldan pointed out, the most important thing for Frei now is to be patient and listen to his support network and his body to help him in his recovery.

The game itself was a battle of wills. For the first half, Columbus was able to control the field and the Sounders were forced to play almost the entire half on their defensive end. When the Sounders did take possession of the ball, they quickly turned it back over, making it easier for the Crew to sustain their attack.

The second half, the Sounders made some adjustments, and started applying their own pressure higher up on the pitch, including a run by Kalani Kossa-Rienzi where he won a challenge, and at full sprint gave a perfectly paced pass to Paul Rothrock as he was making a run to the far post and used his first touch to deposit the ball into the back of the net. The Sounders were in position to take the lead, but missed several attempts as they sustained pressure.

When Kalani picked up a yellow card, and followed it up with another card (on a very soft yellow), it made 3 MLS games in a row that a Sounders player has been ejected from a game. They spent most of the rest of the match avoiding conceding a second goal and managed to do so until the unfortunate sequence that ended the game.

Once again, the Sounders failed to be more clinical in front of the goal as several opportunities were squandered. They were generating quality chances, which bodes well, but have been unable to deliver the last touch. Both Musovski and Ferreira missed quality opportunities and for some reason are struggling to be consistent goal threats.

The Sounders will need to improve their finishing, along with their decision-making on defense and avoiding red cards if they want to be more successful. With the injury to Frei and Joao Paulo earlier in the week who had his season ended with an ACL injury, the Sounders are once again trying to will themselves back into health and make a run for another title.