FEDERICO HIGUAIN MAKES 150TH REGULAR-SEASON START WITH CREW SC
Midfielder Federico Higuain made his 150th regular-season start (155th appearance) for Crew SC in Saturday’s road match against the Chicago Fire. Higuain’s 150 starts for the Black & Gold rank sixth in the club’s list of all-time regular-season starts. Since joining the club in 2012, Higuain has tallied 50 goals and 51 assists and he is the first player in Crew SC history to join the prestigious 50 goal-50 assist club. In 2018, Higuain has made six regular-season appearances (all starts), scoring two goals and recording two assists.
ARTUR MAKES 25TH REGULAR-SEASON START FOR THE BLACK & GOLD
Midfielder Artur made his 25th regular-season start for Crew SC in this past weekend’s road match against the Chicago Fire. Since joining the club from Sao Paulo FC in 2017, Artur has appeared in 30 regular-season matches for the Black & Gold, providing five assists. In 2018, Artur has made six regular-season appearances (all starts), registering two assists.
ZACK STEFFEN SURPASSES BRAD FRIEDEL IN REGULAR-SEASON APPEARANCES AND STARTS
With his start against the Chicago Fire this past Saturday, goalkeeper Zack Steffen surpassed Brad Friedel to take sole possession of seventh place on Crew SC’s list of most appearances and starts by a goalkeeper in regular-season action, with 39 appearances (all starts). Steffen has registered 18 wins, 107 saves and 11 shutouts in his 39 appearances. In 2018, Steffen has made five regular-season appearances (all starts), registering three wins and two shutouts.
JOSH WILLIAMS MAKES FIRST START OF 2018 MLS REGULAR SEASON
Defender Josh Williams made his first start of the 2018 MLS regular season in Saturday’s road contest against the Chicago Fire. Williams started the match at centerback, playing 89 minutes, recording 89 touches and completing 78 passes. In 2017, Williams made 22 regular-season appearances (19 starts) while scoring three goals for the Black & Gold. Since joining the club in 2014, Williams has made 95 regular-season appearances (85 starts) while registering seven goals and four assists.
GYASI ZARDES TIED FOR SECOND-MOST GOALS IN MLS
Through six matches in the 2018 MLS regular season, forward Gyasi Zardes has tallied four goals. Zardes’ four strikes tie him with Nemanja Nikolic (Chicago Fire) and Dominique Badji (Colorado Rapids) for second-most goals in the League, behind only Felipe Gutierrez (Sporting Kansas City) and Josef Martinez (Atlanta United), who have scored five goals each.
CREW SC ON A THREE-MATCH WINNING STREAK AGAINST D.C. UNITED
Heading into Saturday’s road contest against D.C. United, Crew SC is riding a three-match winning streak, while having outscored D.C. 7-1 in the process. The streak dates back to a 2-0 victory at RFK stadium on March 18, 2017. The Black & Gold followed that up with another 2-0 win over D.C. in a home match at MAPFRE Stadium on September 30, 2017, before winning 3-1 on March 24 of this year. Crew SC’s 3-1 victory saw Milton Valenzuela, Ricardo Clark and Pedro Santos all score their first goal for the club in regular-season action. Additionally, the last time Crew SC met D.C. United, the club was without captain Wil Trapp and goalkeeper Zack Steffen, as they were both away with the U.S. Men’s National Team on international duty.
ARTUR AMONG MLS LEADERS IN MULTIPLE CATEGORIES
Through six matches in the 2018 MLS regular season, Crew SC midfielder Artur is among the League leaders in multiple categories, according to Opta. The Brazilian ranks third in attempted passes (384); second in completed passes (332); he is tied for third-most tackles in the League (22) with Felipe Gutierrez (Sporting Kansas City) and Wilfried Zahibo (New England Revolution); he is tied for second-most won tackles (16) with Alphonso Davies (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Rasmus Schuller (Minnesota United FC) and Victor Cabrera (Montreal Impact); and he is tied for seventh-most recoveries (49) with Matthew Lampson (Minnesota United FC) and teammate Zack Steffen. Artur’s 3.91 tackles per 90 minutes also have him in seventh place among players who have played 360 minutes or more this season. Additionally, Artur leads Crew SC in each of the above-mentioned categories.
FEDERICO HIGUAIN THIRD IN MLS IN GOAL-SCORING CHANCES CREATED
Through six matches in the 2018 MLS regular season, Federico Higuain sits third in the League in goal-scoring chances created including assists. Per Opta, Higuain has created 17 goal-scoring chances since the beginning of the season, including two secondary assists, which put him behind only New York City FC’s Maximiliano Moralez (20) and Real Salt Lake’s Albert Rusnak (19). In addition to creating these goal-scoring chances, the midfielder has also scored two goals to bring his 2018 output to two goals and two assists in six regular-season appearances (all starts).
