Entering the 80th minute of Saturday’s match against the San Jose Earthquakes, the Columbus Crew was in the midst of a fantastic start to the 2022 season. Against the Vancouver Whitecaps, a 2021 Western Conference MLS Cup playoff team, Columbus scored four times. On Saturday, San Jose went up early on a penalty kick but the Crew fought back to take a two-goal lead.
For a team that averaged 1.35 goals per game last year, seven goals in two games gave the appearance of a new Black & Gold. It wasn’t just a good start to the season, it was Columbus’ best start ever offensively, breaking the previous record of five goals through the first two games of the year.