The Leagues Cup semi-finals kick-off this week with Columbus Crew taking on Philadelphia Union at Lower.com Field.

The Crew clinched their spot in the last four of Leagues Cup with a narrow victory over fellow MLS side NYCFC via penalty kicks. Juan ‘Cucho’ Hernandez’s strike near the end of the first half canceled out Alonso Martinez’s opener in the first minute before the Crew went on to prevail 4-3 during the shootout.

Like Columbus, Philadelphia also prevailed to semi-finals with a penalty shootout win over Liga MX outfit Mazatlan. Mikael Uhre’s first-half effort was canceled out by Jesus Escoboza’s header in the second half, but the Union would go on to reach the last four with a 4-3 win in penalty kicks.

Here’s 90min‘s preview of Columbus vs Philadelphia.

Last meeting: Columbus Crew 1-1 Philadelphia Union (30 September 2023) – MLS

Current form (all competitions)

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The Crew have no new injuries or suspensions to report on ahead of the clash against Philadelphia.

In terms of form, Cucho Hernandez has been firing on all cylinders as of late with three goal involvements in all three Leagues Cup matches this summer.

Columbus Crew predicted lineup vs NYCFC ( 3-4-2-1 ): Schulte; Moreira, Camacho, Cheberko; Farsi, Zawadzki, Nagbe, Jones; Ramirez, Rossi; Hernandez.

Like the Crew, the Union also have no new injuries ahead of their showdown with the reigning MLS Cup champions.

Veteran defender Jakob Glesnes is sitting on a yellow card after being booked against Mazatlan and could miss the next match if he’s booked again vs Columbus. Striker Tai Baribo will miss the match as he was sent off after being shown a second yellow card in the first half.

On the transfer front, Jose Andres Martinez will unavailable for the match as he’s completing a move to Brazilian club Corinthians in the coming days.

Philadelphia Union predicted lineup vs Columbus Crew ( 4-1-2-1-2 ): Blake; Harriel, Glesnes, Elliott, Wagner; Flach; Sullivan, McGlynn; Gazdag, Uhre, Adeniran.

Columbus have been one of the most consistent teams in North American soccer over the last year-and-a-half under Wilfried Nancy having won MLS Cup and reached the final of Concacaf Champions Cup.

The Crew are MLS Cup champions for a reason, and they’ll manage to take down the Union with a comfortable 2-0 win at home in front of their supporters to reach the final. Philadelphia have done well to reach the last four but their run will come to an end against the in-form Crew.

Prediction: Columbus Crew 2-0 Philadelphia Union

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