Columbus Crew SC and the Montreal Impact squared off in an eight-goal thriller with a disappointing finish for the Black & Gold on Saturday night. The Eastern Conference opponents walked away with a point each after a 4-4 draw at MAPFRE Stadium.
Braces from Kei Kamara and Federico Higuain put Crew SC up 4-1 in front of 14,095 fans, but Montreal bounced back and found the equalizer in the third minute of stoppage time on a Dominic Oduro goal.
Crew SC goalkeeper Steve Clark recorded a career-high eight saves on the night. He was first put to the test in the 15th minute when he pushed away a shot by Montreal midfielder Harry Shipp and denied Ignacio Piatti on the follow-up.
Just seconds later, Crew SC midfielder Justin Meram picked up the ball on the sideline and curled a cross into the Montreal penalty area, where Kamara headed it past ‘keeper Evan Bush to give the Black & Gold the 1-0 lead with his fourth goal of the season.
Ten minutes later, it was Montreal’s turn. Star striker Didier Drogba found Piatti in the Crew SC penalty area. The midfielder made one move and curled a shot past Clark to level the match.
In the 37th minute, Kamara had two chances to double his goal tally and put Crew SC in front once again. The Sierra Leone international directed a powerful header on goal, but Bush parried it away. Kamara eventually got on the rebound but his header rattled the crossbar.
But Kamara did not have to wait much longer to get his second goal of the match.
In the first minute of extra time, a long ball played out of the back found the striker streaking down the middle of the field. Bush came out to contend the ball, but Kamara played it past the goalkeeper and slotted home his second goal of the match. Kamara’s seventh career brace for the Black & Gold gave Crew SC a 2-1 halftime lead.
What was already an exciting first half would be topped after the break with five more goals. The first came in the 48th minute, when after a series of ricochets in the Montreal penalty area the ball eventually fell to the feet of Higuain. The midfielder curved around Bush and put away his second goal of the season for a 3-1 lead.
Minutes later, Meram was tripped up in the Impact area and Crew SC was awarded a penalty. Higuain stepped up and calmly scored his second goal of the match, giving the Black & Gold the 4-1 advantage in the 53rd minute. With the goal Higuain matched Kamara, as the Argentine also recorded his seventh career brace for Crew SC.
The three-goal lead, however, would not last long. In the 57th minute, after Montreal earned a penalty kick, Drogba slotted a shot from the spot past Clark to cut the Crew SC lead to two. And less than one minute later, Piatti recorded a brace of his own to narrow the Black & Gold lead to just one goal.
As the second half wore on, Crew SC played with most of the possession. However, in the third minute of stoppage time, a Montreal throw-in was headed along and fell to Oduro. The former Crew SC player smashed his fourth goal of the season into the back of the net from six yards out to complete the comeback.
With the draw, the Black & Gold moved to nine points on the year at a 2-4-3 record. Crew SC next hosts Liga MX side Tiburones Rojos Veracruz in a friendly on Wednesday. The Black & Gold are back in MLS action on Saturday when they welcome the Colorado Rapids to MAPFRE Stadium. Both matches have kickoff set for 7:30 p.m.
