Columbus Crew fail to capitalize on opportunities vs Charlotte FC in 1-1 draw: 2 takeaways
During the Crew's five-game winning streak, the team outscored opponents by a minimum of two goals every game. It was a different story for Columbus when they faced Charlotte FC on Wednesday.
The Crew finished with a 1-1 draw, which snapped Columbus' winning streak. And combined with its 2-0 loss to Charlotte in March, the Crew have scored a total of one time against Charlotte this season.
So, on the surface, the problem for Columbus is Charlotte's defense. Midfielder Sean Zawadzki described it as difficult to play against with an ability to block the middle of the field and goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina making "big saves."
But there is also the somewhat significant fact that Columbus missed 22 shot opportunities.
"I respect the way that Charlotte plays defensively, but we had many opportunities," Crew coach Wilfried Nancy said. "We missed the opportunities. We had many actions where no defender of Charlotte was there, when they were here. So, that's why we unbalanced them pretty well, but after that, we didn't finish."
Of Columbus' 22 missed shots, nine were on goal and only the long-range laser from striker Cucho Hernandez found the back of the net. That gave the Crew a 1-0 lead at the 31-minute mark.
They continued to hold the lead into halftime, but a weather delay pushed back the start of the second half by nearly 35 minutes from the typical 15 minutes after the first half.
The delay had little effect on the Crew finding open opportunities, and they took 11 attempts in the second half, on which Kahlina was forced to make just six saves.
"I'm not taking anything away from them, but I think we did miss some chances," Crew midfielder Max Arfsten. "It's just one of those game to be honest, where I feel like we dominate and we have more of the chances, the better chances, and they just scored theirs late."
Charlotte FC were the winners of the halftime weather delay vs Columbus Crew
Coming out the weather delay, both teams saw more offensive opportunities, but Charlotte's halftime adjustments were more impactful.
"They started to play a little bit more," Zawadzki said. "You saw balls in behind that posed a real difficulty for us. We were pushing a lot more in the attack, and I think legs started to go a little bit, and you saw them playing from behind. And it made it a little bit more difficult for us to recover and to prevent that from happening."
Charlotte's lone goal came off a misplay from goalkeeper Nicholas Hagen in his first start for Columbus since joining the club in the offseason.
More: Who is Nicholas Hagen? Columbus Crew goalie is already 'a star' among Guatemalan fanbase
Hagen went too far up field while Charlotte forward Patrick Agyemang and Crew defender Rudy Camacho were engaged in a one-on-one battle. The ball went past Camacho and Hagen, allowing Agyemang to take a shot, which Camacho managed to block. Agyemang quickly recovered, and his second shot went past Hagen, who was still tracking back and off balance.
The goal, scored thanks to what Hagen called a "millisecond decision," cost the Hagen a clean sheet in his Lower.com Field debut.
"He did what he needed to do, except for the goal that we conceded," Nancy said. "To me, he had a good attitude to step (up). After that, he missed the ball and had with Rudy a miscommunication, I think. ... The goal that we conceded was a bit difficult, it could have been better."
'I just get upset': Frustration took over for Columbus Crew vs Charlotte FC
With every missed opportunity, Crew players visibly grew more frustrated – especially Arfsten.
Nancy has been giving Arfsten more playing time and has been open about wanting to challenge Arfsten, but the 23-year-old had multiple moments of exasperation in the second half.
Whether he was staying down on the ground after missing one of his three shots on goal or gaping awestruck after Christian Ramirez missed a header off a cross from Arfsten, Arfsten's emotions were clear.
"Sometimes my final ball could be better, or we don't score, and I just get upset," Arfsten said. "I probably shouldn't get as upset as I do, because I think overall, we played well. But sometimes, I just wear my heart on my sleeve."
Get more Columbus Crew content by listening to our podcast
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Crew snap winning-streak in 1-1 draw vs Charlotte: Takeaways
