CF Montreal try to build on first win of '25 in rematch with Crew

Coming off their long-awaited first win of the season, CF Montreal could have enough momentum to avenge an earlier loss to the Columbus Crew.

Two clubs at opposite ends of the Eastern Conference standings square off Wednesday night in Montreal.

Only the Los Angeles Galaxy remain winless after Montreal (1-8-3, 6 points) pulled out a 1-0 victory at New York City FC last weekend. Prince Owusu's goal right out of halftime proved to be the only offense of the match and was just the sixth goal this season for Montreal, which has suffered six one-goal defeats in 2025.

"We knew we had to do better, but we never really got too down on ourselves, even when we weren't getting positive results," Montreal defender Jalen Neal said. "... We really wanted to show that we really care about this club, that we care about this season."

One of those close Montreal defeats came 2-1 at Columbus on April 5. Owusu, who's posted half of his side's goal total in 2025, also scored in the 50th minute of that contest. But Montreal was already down 2-0 following first-half goals from Aziel Jackson and Jacen Russell-Rowe.

That triumph was part of a season-high three-match winning streak for the Crew (7-1-4, 25 points), who sit second in the East but are tied with first-place FC Cincinnati on points.

While Montreal is 0-2-1 at home this season, Columbus is 3-0-2 on the road. Sean Zawadzki's goal in the third minute of second-half stoppage time allowed the Crew to salvage a point via a 2-2 draw at Philadelphia last weekend.

"We respect every opponent but fear no one," Columbus coach and ex-Montreal boss Wilfried Nancy said. "We know that every game is important."

With two scores this season, Zawadzki is one of five Crew players with multiple goals. Russell-Rowe has just one goal in five matches after he notched his fourth of the year and earned an assist versus Montreal last month.

Columbus is 4-0-2 against Montreal since a 2-1 home loss in August 2022. The Crew's most recent defeat at Montreal came in 2019.

--Field Level Media