Columbus Crew SC vs Chicago Fire FC, MLS 2021 REGULAR SEASON
Overview
Match Preview
Columbus Crew SC vs Chicago Fire FC — MLS at Historic Crew Stadium.
- Columbus Crew SC 34 games · 47 pts (2026/26)
- Chicago Fire FC 34 games · 55 pts (2026/26)
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nashville SC | 34 | 77 |
| 2 | Internacional CF Miami | 34 | 60 |
| 3 | New England Revolution | 34 | 58 |
| 4 | Chicago Fire FC | 34 | 55 |
| 5 | Charlotte FC | 34 | 54 |
| 6 | Philadelphia Union | 34 | 50 |
| 7 | Columbus Crew SC | 34 | 47 |
| 8 | FC Cincinnati | 34 | 46 |
| 9 | Orlando City SC | 34 | 46 |
| 10 | New York City FC | 34 | 42 |
| 11 | New York Red Bulls | 34 | 42 |
| 12 | Toronto FC | 34 | 39 |
| 13 | Atlanta United FC | 34 | 33 |
| 14 | D.C. United SC | 34 | 33 |
| 15 | Montreal Impact FC | 34 | 26 |
| 16 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 34 | 64 |
| 17 | FC Dallas | 34 | 58 |
| 18 | St. Louis City | 34 | 54 |
| 19 | San Jose Earthquakes | 34 | 52 |
| 20 | Houston Dynamo | 34 | 51 |
| 21 | Los Angeles FC | 34 | 47 |
| 22 | Portland Timbers | 34 | 46 |
| 23 | Seattle Sounders FC | 34 | 46 |
| 24 | Real Salt Lake | 34 | 45 |
| 25 | Minnesota United FC | 34 | 44 |
| 26 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 34 | 44 |
| 27 | Colorado Rapids SC | 34 | 43 |
| 28 | San Diego FC | 34 | 38 |
| 29 | Austin FC | 34 | 34 |
| 30 | Sporting Kansas City | 34 | 26 |
Head-to-Head
Recent Form
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Jun | Chicago Fire FC | H | 2–0 | W |
| 29 May | Toronto FC | H | 2–1 | W |
| 22 May | New York City FC | A | 0–0 | D |
| 16 May | New England Revolution | A | 0–1 | L |
| 12 May | Toronto FC | A | 0–2 | L |
| 08 May | D.C. United SC | H | 3–1 | W |
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Jun | Columbus Crew SC | A | 0–2 | L |
| 29 May | Montreal Impact FC | H | 0–1 | L |
| 22 May | Internacional CF Miami | H | 0–0 | D |
| 14 May | D.C. United SC | A | 0–1 | L |
| 08 May | Philadelphia Union | H | 0–2 | L |
| 01 May | New York Red Bulls | A | 0–2 | L |
Season Stats
| Columbus Crew SC | Chicago Fire FC | |
|---|---|---|
| #7 | Position | #4 |
| 47 | Points | 55 |
| 34 | Played | 34 |
| 14 / 5 / 15 | W / D / L | 16 / 7 / 11 |
| 59 | Scored | 64 |
| 52 | Conceded | 54 |
| +7 | GD | +10 |
| 1.38 | PPG | 1.62 |
| 41% | Win % | 47% |
Key Stats
50%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (20 games)
H2H (20 games)
55%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
26%
Clean Sheets
Columbus Crew SC this season
Columbus Crew SC this season
24%
Clean Sheets
Chicago Fire FC this season
Chicago Fire FC this season
Columbus Crew SC are 7th (47 pts). Chicago Fire FC are 4th (55 pts).
Goal Timing (This Season)
Columbus Crew SC
0-15
4/8
16-30
12/7
31-45
7/7
46-60
10/2
61-75
7/5
76+
6/8
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Chicago Fire FC
0-15
9/4
16-30
9/10
31-45
6/9
46-60
10/9
61-75
10/4
76+
6/10
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Top Scorers (This Season)
Columbus Crew SC
| Diego Rossi | 6 G | 1 A |
| Wessam Abou Ali | 5 G | 1 A |
Chicago Fire FC
| Maren Haile-Selassie | 13 G | 5 A |
| Hugo Cuypers | 12 G | |
| Hugo Cuypers | 11 G | |
| Robert Lewandowski | 9 G | 3 A |
| Philip Zinckernagel | 5 G | 4 A |
Events
Match Events
- 0' Temperatures are rising at Historic Crew Stadium as Columbus Crew SC face off against Chicago Fire FC in what promises to be a fascinating contest.
- 5' Neither side is committing men forward. This has all the hallmarks of a tense, tactical contest.
- 10' Robert Beric is putting in a real shift tonight. He has covered more ground than anyone else for Chicago Fire FC so far.
- 15' A tactical chess match is unfolding here. The question is which manager blinks first.
- 17' The USA Gyasi Zardes breaks the deadlock on 17 minutes. 1-0!
- 21' Derrick Etienne was booked on 21.
- 25' That looks like a foul for a Yellow card for Josh Williams.
- 30' While there is no rush on the pitch, let’s have a look at some stats. Jhon Espinoza made 15 appearances and scored 1 goals. He is very likely to score a goal today.
- 34' with the perfectly-timed delivery and Gyasi Zardes makes no mistake. 2-0!
- 39' Chicago Fire FC have won 424 goals from 294 games. They will be desperate to add to that tally today.
- 44' The referee does not hesitate — a Yellow card for Fabian Herbers on 44 minutes.
- 46' Chicago Fire FC manager makes another effort to make the tables turned. Luka Stojanovic is hanging Brian Gutierrez on the field on 46 minute.
- 51' Columbus Crew SC is showing some good football. However, Columbus Crew SC are ready to play back every minute. It might result in some problems for the home side. The game will hardly remain goalless.
- 56' Columbus Crew SC currently sit in the Array table. A result here could be decisive in the race for the top positions.
- 58' The supporters are chanting for Jhon Espinoza. He replaces Boris Sekulic on 58 minute.
- 63' The crowd applauds Alexandru Matan as he leaves the pitch. Waylon Francis steps in for Columbus Crew SC.
- 65' Poor challenge from Alvaro Medran. The referee spots it immediately and shows the Yellow card.
- 70' Supporters expect more eagerness from Liam Fraser, as he is very good at scoring at Historic Crew Stadium with 0 goals in the last 0 games.
- 71' Derrick Etienne makes way for Kevin Molino at the 71 minute mark. A tactical switch from Columbus Crew SC.
- 76' Although teams showed high tempo form the start, they seem to slow down a bit. Both sides really need to catch a fire. Otherwise, we have another goalless match.
- 81' With 0 assists to his name this season, Miguel Navarro is clearly more than just a goal scorer for Columbus Crew SC.
- 83' Chicago Fire FC make a change. Alvaro Medran trudges off to be replaced by Elliot Collier on 83 minutes.
- 87' Saad Abdul-Salam gets the nod from Columbus Crew SC. He replaces Pedro Santos and will look to change the dynamic.
- Both sets of fans can go home satisfied — a 2-0 draw is a fair result on the day.
Lineups
Columbus Crew SC Lineups
Starting XI
- 20
-
22
Derrick Etienne ↓ Kevin Molino 71'
- 18
- 24
- 4
- 25
- 11
-
7
Pedro Santos ↓ Saad Abdul-Salam 87'
- 6
- 10
- 3
Bench
- 23
-
14
Waylon Francis ↑ 63'
- 17
- 28
-
9
Kevin Molino ↑ 71'
- 30
- 5
- 16
-
26
Saad Abdul-Salam ↑ 87'
Coach
Caleb Porter
Chicago Fire FC Lineups
Starting XI
-
10
Alvaro Medran ↓ Elliot Collier 83'
- 21
- 5
- 1
- 7
-
2
Boris Sekulic ↓ Jhon Espinoza 58'
- 6
- 22
- 40
- 23
- 9
Bench
-
27
Robert Beric ↑ 46'
- 4
- 20
-
28
Elliot Collier ↑ 83'
-
8
Luka Stojanovic ↑ 46'
- 3
-
14
Jhon Espinoza ↑ 58'
- 32
- 38
Coach
Raphaël Wicky
H2H
H2H Top Scorers
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Gyasi Zardes | 8 |
| Diego Rossi | 3 |
| Derrick Etienne | 3 |
| Cucho Hernandez | 3 |
| Jacen Russell-Rowe | 3 |
| Djordje Mihailovic | 2 |
| Juan Hernandez | 2 |
| Nemanja Nikolics | 2 |
Head to Head
Columbus Crew SC Form
Chicago Fire FC Form
2021-06-19
Columbus Crew SC
2–0
Chicago Fire FC
L
2021-05-29
Chicago Fire FC
0–1
Montreal Impact FC
L
2021-05-22
Chicago Fire FC
0–0
Internacional CF Miami
D
2021-05-14
D.C. United SC
1–0
Chicago Fire FC
L
2021-05-08
Chicago Fire FC
0–2
Philadelphia Union
L
2021-05-01
New York Red Bulls
2–0
Chicago Fire FC
L
Predictions
Prediction accuracy
1 / 4
2
Columbus Crew SC xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
1.14
Chicago Fire FC xG
I would bet for:
Over 2.5 goals 60% + Both teams to score 59%
Match Result
✓ CorrectActual: Columbus Crew SC win
Both Teams to Score
✗ Wrong
Avg goals/match: 3.14
Actual: No — clean sheet
Over / Under Goals
✗ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 94% |
|
6% |
| ± 1.5 | 82% |
|
18% |
| ± 2.5 | 60% |
|
40% |
| ± 3.5 | 38% |
|
62% |
| ± 4.5 | 21% |
|
79% |
Double Chance
Columbus Crew SC or Draw
81%
Draw or Chicago Fire FC
42%
Columbus Crew SC or Chicago Fire FC
77%
Half-Time Result
✗ WrongActual: Columbus Crew SC win at HT
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
1 – 1
10.7%
2 – 1
9.5%
2 – 0
Actual
1 – 0
8%
3 – 1
6.3%
0 – 0
5.9%
3 – 0
5.6%
1 – 2
5.4%
2 – 2
5.4%
0 – 1
4.2%
3 – 2
3.7%
4 – 1
3.2%
Asian Handicap — Columbus Crew SC
| Handicap | Columbus Crew SC covers | Push | Chicago Fire FC covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 17% | — | 83% |
| -2 | 17% | 17% | 66% |
| -1.5 | 34% | — | 66% |
| -1 | 34% | 22% | 44% |
| -0.5 | 56% | — | 44% |
| +0.5 | 80% | — | 20% |
| +1 | 80% | 12% | 8% |
| +1.5 | 92% | — | 8% |
| +2 | 92% | 6% | 3% |
| +2.5 | 97% | — | 3% |
Clean Sheet
Columbus Crew SC keeps clean sheet
33%
✗
Chicago Fire FC keeps clean sheet
14%
✓
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.