Columbus Crew equal club-record unbeaten start: "We never give up" | OneFootball

By Justin Ruderman

The Columbus Crew laid out their argument for being the team to beat in MLS this season with a determined 2-1 comeback victory at St. Louis CITY SC in Matchday 8's edition of Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire.

Courtesy of goals on either side of halftime from Steven Moreira and Diego Rossi, the Crew matched their longest unbeaten start to a league campaign at eight games (5W-0L-3D). The spectacular run rivals their 6W-0L-2D start to the 2010 season, completed 15 years ago.

"I didn’t know," head coach Wilfried Nancy said post-game at Energizer Park. "It’s a fact. I like when this is something factual.

"I’m proud of that because there is a lot of work behind that. We are not looking for these kinds of things. These kinds of things happen naturally if we do good stuff."

Back on top

In the process, the Crew reclaimed the top spot in the Eastern Conference (18 points) as one of two remaining unbeaten teams in the league alongside Inter Miami CF. Only Vancouver Whitecaps FC (19 points) top the Crew in the Supporters’ Shield standings.

"It’s a really good feeling. There’s definitely some momentum going," defender Max Arfsten said. "I think the feeling is that we're all just cohesive.

"We're all working together, and no matter what, if we get scored on first like we did tonight, we all just kind of stay locked in and on the same page. I really think that's what it is. We know our system and we just know what we're capable of. That’s what pushes us through these tough games.”

Despite transferring Cucho Hernández to LaLiga side Real Betis for a club-record fee in the offseason, Columbus haven't missed a beat in 2025. Nearly a quarter of the way through the season, the Crew are setting the pace in the East.

“It just feels like we're all on the same page, player for player, position for position,” Arfsten said.

“We work on stuff in training, specific things for each specific game. Every week we kind of have an idea of how the opponent's going to defend and we just try and replicate that in training and then you see the products in the games.”

Decisive debut

Filling Cucho’s DP slot on the Crew roster (although not his striker position), new signing Dániel Gazdag came off the bench at halftime to make an instant impact in his Crew debut following his recent $4 million trade from Philadelphia Union. Ten minutes into his debut, Gazdag sprung the attack, ripping through the heart of the St. Louis defense with the secondary assist on Rossi’s winning goal.

"You can see on the second goal, the way he combined with Dylan Chambost and after we give to Diego. He’s a good player," Moreira described Gazdag. "We see in the first training he will help the team a lot. We have always had a good team, so with him, it will be very, very good."

No matter what is thrown at the Crew this season, Nancy’s squad continues to epitomize resilience. On Sunday night, victory required rebounding from an early deficit to claim a third consecutive 2-1 victory.

"Honestly, I’m not surprised [by] the motivation of the Columbus Crew. We never give up," Moreira said.

"We conceded the first goal, but we [were] playing well. They got one chance, they score, but that’s the motivation of the Columbus Crew. We never give up and we try to play, play, play again and score goals."

Columbus Crew vs. Inter Miami: Game of the year upcoming?

Battle of the unbeatens

Columbus will aim for a statement result next Saturday when they host Miami in nearby Cleveland, Ohio at Huntington Bank Field (4:30 pm ET | MLS Season Pass).

The Eastern Conference powerhouses are the only two remaining unbeaten teams in the league, with Columbus the reigning Leagues Cup champions and Miami building off last year's record-setting, Supporters' Shield-winning campaign.

"It will be a great game against two of the best teams," Moreira said. "We will just try to enjoy and try to win again."

WATCH: Columbus Crew extend unbeaten streak to eight games