COLUMBUS CREW

Eloy Room saves Columbus Crew to hold onto first road win of 2022 season at Atlanta United

Jacob Myers
The Columbus Dispatch

ATLANTA — The Crew hadn’t scored in over 180 minutes and had been shut out six of their past eight league games. 

But it took just one minute on Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to take a rare lead on the road, which led to an even rarer three points in enemy territory. 

Had it not been for Eloy Room, however, the Crew would have surrendered another win in the very final stages of the game. 

For the second straight year, Crew captain Jonathan Mensah scored the opening goal off a corner kick. Last season it was the only tally. Forward Erik Hurtado, who was given the surprise start over Miguel Berry, made the most of his opportunity by closing out the first half of a 2-1 victory with a clinical one-on-one goal. 

"This is a huge thing for us, for the boys, and the confidence of the team,” Room said. “This could be a turning point in the season. It gives an extra boost before the international break. We make a little jump in the table, too. I think this is really important points not only for the team but the whole club." 

Atlanta forward Dom Dwyer scored on a bicycle kick at the doorstep of the goal in second-half stoppage time to give the home side a chance. Atlanta midfielder Marcelino Moreno attempted a rocket of a shot from the top of the box that forced Room to dive full spread to his left and knock it away from the top corner of the goal. 

Then on an ensuing corner kick, Room saved a ball off the line to keep the Crew ahead. Room still couldn’t quite comprehend the flurry of chances Atlanta had at the end of the match. 

"It was crazy. So many crosses, so many chances for them,” Room said. “I just tried to save the ball. We knew it was going to be difficult when they scored the goal.” 

May 28, 2022; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Columbus Crew forward Erik Hurtado (19) scores a goal past Atlanta United defender Alex De John (3) during the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The win Saturday night was a breakthrough in more than a few ways. And none of which had to do with the Crew getting a road win without its top player in Lucas Zelarayan. 

It was the first road win of the season and only the fourth in 36 road games since the Crew won in Atlanta in September 2019. In all but three of the first 12 games this season, the Crew had allowed the first goal. They got the first within 60 seconds, and followed it up with a crucial second goal from the third-choice striker at the start of the season. 

Most of all, the Crew got out of a brutal four game stretch with a win, and they now enter a 20-day break between games with more momentum than they’ve had in well over a month. 

"Proud the guys got rewarded for their hard work,” coach Caleb Porter said. “They showed a lot of heart today, a lot of fight today. It's a trademark MLS smash-and-grab result for us coming on the road.” 

Room also undoubtedly had his best game of the season. Before making two desperation saves at the end of the game, he made two point-blank saves against Araújo and Brooks Lennon in the first half to preserve the lead. He had a season-high eight saves on 22 shots. 

May 28, 2022; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Columbus Crew players react with defender Jonathan Mensah (4) after his goal in the first minute against Atlanta United during the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The Crew advanced quickly into the attacking half after opening whistle to be awarded a corner kick. With the team’s first-choice corner-kick taker in Zelarayan available, Pedro Santos stepped in and delivered an inch-perfect cross to Mensah at the back post for the 1-0 lead. 

Being so early in the game, the 1-0 lead was far from safe. Atlanta began to control possession and started to get behind the Crew defense. Moreno and Luiz Araújo combined on a few occasions for chances in the Crew penalty area. 

Too often in the first half, the Crew gave the ball away as soon as they gained possession. Those turnovers allowed Atlanta to stay up the field in the attack. But in the 45th minute, it also left them susceptible to a ball over the top. 

Derrick Etienne Jr. saw this and played a long pass to an open space above the box on the left side. Hurtado beat Alex De John to the ball, then made an excellent inside move to free up an angle for a curling shot into the right-side netting. 

"That's like my favorite time in the game, to get one-v-ones and to run in behind,” Hurtado said. “You saw what happened." 

The Crew had three players go out with injuries. Santos had to exit early in the game with a hamstring injury. Yaw Yeboah and Etienne also exited with apparent muscle injuries. Midfielder Artur was limping throughout the end of the game but stayed on the field. 

After the final whistle, the players remaining on the field for the Crew were dancing and hugging each other. They hadn’t had this feeling in some time. 

"I think before the break it's really important to put a little bit of a statement game that we're in this fight and we're not giving up,” Porter said. “We're going to keep going." 

jmyers@dispatch.com

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