The Crew plays a possession-style attack, as does Miami, and is getting adjusted to playing without Cucho Hernandez, who left for Spanish club Real Betis. Daniel Gazdag, a designated player who joined Columbus from Philadelphia, remains scoreless through his first eight games with the Crew and has no assists.

In a matchup billed as a clash between two of the Eastern Conference's best, Lionel Messi and Inter Miami made it a one-sided affair, cruising to a 5-1 win over the Columbus Crew at Chase Stadium Saturday night.

While the Herons had managed to go four games without a win, they got some confidence back with a midweek 4–2 victory over CF Montréal, led by goalscoring efforts from Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, who both netted braces.