Columbus Crew SC vs Nashville SC, MLS 2026 CONFERENCE SEMI FINALS
Overview
Match Preview
Columbus Crew SC vs Nashville SC — MLS at MAPFRE Stadium.
- Columbus Crew SC 18 games · 20 pts (2026/26)
- Nashville SC 18 games · 40 pts (2026/26)
Match Details
- Referee Andrew Bigelow
- Referee Armando Villarreal
- Referee Nima Saghafi
- Referee Cory Richardson
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nashville SC | 18 | 40 |
| 2 | Internacional CF Miami | 18 | 38 |
| 3 | New England Revolution | 18 | 30 |
| 4 | Chicago Fire FC | 17 | 29 |
| 5 | New York City FC | 18 | 26 |
| 6 | FC Cincinnati | 18 | 26 |
| 7 | Charlotte FC | 18 | 25 |
| 8 | New York Red Bulls | 18 | 25 |
| 9 | D.C. United SC | 18 | 23 |
| 10 | Columbus Crew SC | 18 | 20 |
| 11 | Orlando City SC | 18 | 20 |
| 12 | Toronto FC | 18 | 17 |
| 13 | Philadelphia Union | 18 | 16 |
| 14 | Montreal Impact FC | 18 | 16 |
| 15 | Atlanta United FC | 18 | 12 |
| 16 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 17 | 34 |
| 17 | Los Angeles FC | 19 | 34 |
| 18 | San Jose Earthquakes | 18 | 33 |
| 19 | Houston Dynamo | 18 | 32 |
| 20 | FC Dallas | 18 | 27 |
| 21 | Real Salt Lake | 17 | 27 |
| 22 | St. Louis City | 18 | 26 |
| 23 | Portland Timbers | 18 | 24 |
| 24 | Seattle Sounders FC | 17 | 24 |
| 25 | Minnesota United FC | 18 | 24 |
| 26 | Colorado Rapids SC | 18 | 22 |
| 27 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 19 | 22 |
| 28 | San Diego FC | 18 | 21 |
| 29 | Austin FC | 18 | 17 |
| 30 | Sporting Kansas City | 18 | 14 |
Head-to-Head
Recent Form
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Nov | Nashville SC | H | 2–0 | W |
| 21 Nov | New York Red Bulls | H | 3–2 | W |
| 08 Nov | Atlanta United FC | H | 2–1 | W |
| 05 Nov | Orlando City SC | A | 1–2 | L |
| 01 Nov | Philadelphia Union | H | 2–1 | W |
| 29 Oct | D.C. United SC | A | 0–1 | L |
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Nov | Columbus Crew SC | A | 0–2 | L |
| 24 Nov | Toronto FC | A | 1–0 | W |
| 21 Nov | Internacional CF Miami | H | 3–0 | W |
| 08 Nov | Orlando City SC | A | 3–2 | W |
| 05 Nov | FC Dallas | H | 0–1 | L |
| 01 Nov | Chicago Fire FC | H | 1–1 | D |
Season Stats
| Columbus Crew SC | Nashville SC | |
|---|---|---|
| #10 | Position | #1 |
| 20 | Points | 40 |
| 18 | Played | 18 |
| 5 / 5 / 8 | W / D / L | 12 / 4 / 2 |
| 26 | Scored | 35 |
| 28 | Conceded | 14 |
| -2 | GD | +21 |
| 1.11 | PPG | 2.22 |
| 28% | Win % | 67% |
Key Stats
33%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (12 games)
H2H (12 games)
33%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
21%
Clean Sheets
Columbus Crew SC this season
Columbus Crew SC this season
42%
Clean Sheets
Nashville SC this season
Nashville SC this season
Columbus Crew SC are 10th (20 pts). Nashville SC are 1st (40 pts).
Goal Timing (This Season)
Columbus Crew SC
0-15
2/6
16-30
2/2
31-45
6/2
46-60
3/2
61-75
1/4
76+
2/2
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Nashville SC
0-15
2/1
16-30
5/3
31-45
2/2
46-60
5/1
61-75
5/3
76+
4/2
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Top Scorers (This Season)
Columbus Crew SC
| Diego Rossi | 6 G | 1 A |
| Wessam Abou Ali | 5 G | 1 A |
Nashville SC
| Sam Surridge | 10 G | |
| Hany Mukhtar | 6 G | 4 A |
| Warren Madrigal | 5 G | 2 A |
Events
Match Events
- 0' Both captains have shaken hands and the referee is ready. We are underway at MAPFRE Stadium!
- 5' Jonathan Mensah needs to be pretty careful with his discipline considering 0 Yellow cards this season.
- 10' Columbus Crew SC are deployed in a today, looking to exploit space against Nashville SC's shape.
- 15' It is a cagey affair so far. Columbus Crew SC in their trying to find a way past Nashville SC's compact .
- 20' The teams are not in a rush to score plenty of goals. It might look strange considering Columbus Crew SC that had 287 games and scored 430 goals.
- 25' Columbus Crew SC have won 430 goals from 287 games. They will be desperate to add to that tally today.
- 30' The referee has had an easy afternoon — neither side has been overly physical in the tackle.
- 35' With 0 assists to his name this season, Pedro Santos is clearly more than just a goal scorer for Columbus Crew SC.
- 40' It looks like no one’s ball. Columbus Crew SC is used to counterattacking playing. None of the sides are ready to take the lead.
- 42' The referee has no hesitation. Alistair Johnston is booked for Nashville SC — Yellow card on 42.
- 47' Neither side is committing men forward. This has all the hallmarks of a tense, tactical contest.
- 52' Both teams are passing the ball around with high level of urgency. Nashville SC needs to do something about it to get closer to the goal.
- 57' Spectators are craving for more action. Both teams play very cautiously. They need to put some more energy.
- 62' Nashville SC are keeping things exceptionally tight at the back. It will take something special to break them down.
- 67' The referee is likely to let players tackle, as he already missed some meaty challenges during opening seconds. He is still to establish what should not be done by the players and what is acceptable on the pitch. It’s going to be a tough game for Alex Muyl suffering a number of foals already.
- 72' We are waiting for someone to take the initiative. Who will be the first to commit to attack?
- 73' The supporters are chanting for Derrick Jones. He replaces Brian Anunga on 73 minute.
- 78' Matchday of the Array and both teams know exactly what is at stake tonight.
- 83' Over 83 minutes have gone by without a meaningful attack. The supporters want more.
- 88' A tactical chess match is unfolding here. The question is which manager blinks first.
- Time to leave. No sensation happened. Another win for Columbus Crew SC players.
Lineups
Columbus Crew SC Lineups
Starting XI
- 13
- 19
- 4
- 25
-
11
Gyasi Zardes ↓ Krisztian Nemeth 113'
- 7
- 8
- 3
- 6
-
12
Luis Diaz ↓ Ema Boateng 109'
- 10
Bench
-
29
Krisztian Nemeth ↑ 113'
-
20
Ema Boateng ↑ 109'
-
2
Christopher Cadden ↑ 116'
- 16
- 28
- 9
- 30
- 21
Coach
Caleb Porter
Nashville SC Lineups
Starting XI
- 4
-
29
Alex Muyl ↓ Handwalla Bwana 105'
- 1
- 25
- 8
-
99
Jhonder Cadiz ↓ Daniel Rios 91'
- 6
- 2
- 10
-
27
Brian Anunga ↓ Derrick Jones 73'
-
12
Alistair Johnston ↓ Eric Miller 105'
Bench
- 3
-
21
Derrick Jones ↑ 73'
-
70
Handwalla Bwana ↑ 105'
-
15
Eric Miller ↑ 105'
- 7
-
23
Taylor Washington ↑ 91'
- 22
-
14
Daniel Rios ↑ 91'
- 30
Coach
Gary Smith
H2H
H2H Top Scorers
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Hany Mukhtar | 5 |
| Sean Zawadzki | 2 |
| Gyasi Zardes | 2 |
| Christian Ramirez | 2 |
| Pedro Santos | 2 |
| Diego Rossi | 2 |
| Sam Surridge | 2 |
| Fafa Picault | 1 |
Head to Head
Columbus Crew SC Form
2020-11-30
Columbus Crew SC
2–0
Nashville SC
W
2020-11-21
Columbus Crew SC
3–2
New York Red Bulls
W
2020-11-08
Columbus Crew SC
2–1
Atlanta United FC
W
2020-11-05
Orlando City SC
2–1
Columbus Crew SC
L
2020-11-01
Columbus Crew SC
2–1
Philadelphia Union
W
2020-10-29
D.C. United SC
1–0
Columbus Crew SC
L
Predictions
Prediction accuracy
3 / 4
1.38
Columbus Crew SC xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
1.23
Nashville SC xG
I would bet for:
Columbus Crew SC or Nashville SC 73%
Match Result
✓ CorrectActual: Columbus Crew SC win
Both Teams to Score
✗ Wrong
Avg goals/match: 2.61
Actual: No — clean sheet
Over / Under Goals
✓ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 91% |
|
9% |
| ± 1.5 | 73% |
|
27% |
| ± 2.5 | 48% |
|
52% |
| ± 3.5 | 27% |
|
73% |
| ± 4.5 | 13% |
|
87% |
Double Chance
Columbus Crew SC or Draw
71%
Draw or Nashville SC
56%
Columbus Crew SC or Nashville SC
73%
Half-Time Result
✓ CorrectActual: Draw at HT
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
1 – 1
13.4%
0 – 0
9.4%
1 – 0
9.1%
2 – 1
8.3%
0 – 1
8%
1 – 2
7.4%
2 – 0
Actual
0 – 2
5.5%
2 – 2
5.2%
3 – 1
3.8%
3 – 0
3.1%
1 – 3
3.1%
Asian Handicap — Columbus Crew SC
| Handicap | Columbus Crew SC covers | Push | Nashville SC covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 7% | — | 93% |
| -2 | 7% | 12% | 82% |
| -1.5 | 18% | — | 82% |
| -1 | 18% | 20% | 61% |
| -0.5 | 39% | — | 61% |
| +0.5 | 68% | — | 32% |
| +1 | 68% | 18% | 14% |
| +1.5 | 86% | — | 14% |
| +2 | 86% | 9% | 5% |
| +2.5 | 95% | — | 5% |
Clean Sheet
Columbus Crew SC keeps clean sheet
30%
✗
Nashville SC keeps clean sheet
26%
✓
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.