The shorthanded Seattle Sounders couldn’t keep pace with Columbus Crew SC in their Wednesday evening road clash at MAPFRE Stadium, ultimately falling 3-0 following goals by Frederico Higuain, Justin Meram and Ola Kamara.
Higuain and Meram notched two well-taken distance tallies in the first 21 minutes, while Kamara added the dagger just after second half kickoff to pace the hosts.
Starting the game without star forwards Clint Dempsey and Jordan Morris (US national team duty), center backs Chad Marshall (rest) and Roman Torres (hamstring), as well as midfielder Harry Shipp (hip flexor) and right back Brad Evans (rest), Seattle struggled to contain Crew SC throughout the contest after Higuain’s 10th-minute opener.
Rookie forward Seyi Adekoya made his first MLS start at forward for Seattle, playing 64 minutes before subbing off. Left back Joevin Jones also moved to the wing for the contest, with Oniel Fisher and Jordy Delem occupying the wide fullback roles. Midfielder Alvaro Fernandez rounded out the reserve-heavy side, making his fourth start of the season on the wing opposite Jones.
Higuain opened the scoring with Columbus’s first distance goal, whipping his shot past a diving Stefan Frei to hand the hosts the 1-0 lead just 10 minutes into the match. Meram doubled that just 11 minutes after that with a distance tally of his own that also snuck past an outstretched Frei to put Seattle in the two-goal hole.
Seattle would hold Crew SC off the scoresheet through the rest of the first half, but Kamara would manage the dagger in the 51st after tucking another finish past Frei from a difficult angle, sealing the 3-0 defeat.
The defeat snapped Seattle’s two-game winning streak following 1-0 victories over Real Salt Lake and the Portland Timbers in their previous two matches. The Sounders now return home for their next match, which will see the Rave Green take on the Houston Dynamo in a clash between Western Conference foes at CenturyLink Field on June 3.
