Columbus Crew News: STARTING XI on road at Philadelphia Union

(courtesy Columbus Crew Communications)

(6:00 P.M. ET, CW COLUMBUS, 1460 AM ESPN)

WHERE TO WATCH/LISTEN

Saturday’s home match against the Philadelphia Union begins at 6:00 p.m. ET and is set to be locally televised on WWHO (CW Columbus). Neil Sika, Jordan Angeli and Brett Hiltbrand are slated to have the call in English. Pre-match coverage will begin at 5:30 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio. The match is also available in English on 1460 ESPN and streaming via “Listen Live” on 971TheFan.com, with Chris Doran calling the match. A Spanish audio stream is available on ColumbusCrew.com, with Juan Valladares on the call.

CREW AMONG MLS LEADERS IN xG

Through five matches in the 2022 MLS regular season, the Crew is among the League leaders when it comes to Expected Goals (xG) per Opta Statistics. Expected Goals measures the quality of a chance by calculating the likelihood that it will be scored from a particular position on the pitch during a particular phase of play. The Crew’s 11.42 xG are second in MLS behind only FC Cincinnati (11.94), which has played six matches. In addition to Expected Goals, the Crew is also among League leaders when it comes to shots (excluding blocked shots) and shots on target, having had a total of 60 shots and 26 shots on target. Derrick Etienne leads the Crew in xG with 2.54, while Lucas Zelarayan leads the Black & Gold in shots with 16 (eight on target). For a list of the MLS leaders in xG please see the table below.

LUCAS ZELARAYAN TIED FOR SECOND PLACE IN MLS GOLDEN BOOT STANDINGS

The Black & Gold midfielder remains in the running for the MLS Golden Boot for the 2022 season. Zelarayan’s 4 goals and 2 assists have him currently tied for second place after Week 5. His impressive start to the 2022 season has earned him a spot on the MLSsoccer.com Player of the Week three times and was named the MLSsoccer.com Player of the Month for February/March.

COURTESY COLUMBUS CREW COMMUNICATIONS