There has been a fair amount of uncertainty regarding who would get the start tonight for the Columbus Crew in the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal match against Real Salt Lake. Now, we have our answer. Among the starters are five players who were not with the team last year, including three players without a single game of MLS experience.
Columbus Crew Vs. Real Salt Lake, CONCACAF Champions League: Starting Lineups Announced
Real Salt Lake, to no one’s surprise, is fielding a team that is reasonably close to their first-choice side. All 11 starters were with the team last year and at least nine of them will likely be starting at MLS First Kick. It’s clear that RSL is making good on its claim that this is an important match for them.
For the Crew, they will be relying upon a relatively untested goalkeeper (Ray Burse), a rookie center back (Rich Balchan), a newly signed international fullback (Sebastian Miranda), a rookie central midfielder (Cole Grossman) and a player they just signed on Monday (Josh Gardner).
The good news, at least for fans of watchable soccer, is that the field has apparently been cleared of snow. The gametime temperature is about 25 degrees, but the forecast suggests little chance of snow.
Full preview of the game.
RSL Starting XI: Nick Rimando, Tony Beltran, Jamison Olave, Nat Borchers, Chris Wingert; Kyle Beckerman, Ned Grabavoy, Will Johnson, Javier Morales; Alvaro Saborio, Fabian Espindola. Bench: Reynish, Russell, McKenzie, Williams, Gonzalez, Alvarez, Paulo Junior
Crew starting XI: Ray Burse, Josh Gardner, Rich Balchan, Andy Iro, Sebastian Miranda, Emmanuel Ekpo, Cole Grossman, Eddie Gaven, Robbie Rogers, Andres Mendoza, Emilio Renteria. Bench: Hesmer, Williams, Nyamekye, Griffit, Cunningham, Heinemann, Meram.
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