- Columbus Crew have won two, drawn one and lost two of their last five matches and are on a two-match winning streak.
- New York City FC have won two, drawn one and lost two of their last five fixtures and are on a two-match losing run.
- Columbus Crew have won three, drawn two and lost two of their seven home games in MLS 2026, scoring 1.29 and conceding 0.86 goals per game.
Crew have the edge in a fine fixture
Columbus Crew and New York City FC both occupy the bottom half of the MLS 2026 table, with the Crew 21st on 16 points from 15 games and the visitors 17th on 19 after as many games. With just three points between the two in the table, it's hard to call this match, but Crew's home advantage and the head-to-head between the teams favour a Columbus win on Wednesday.
The recent head-to-head between these two teams is almost a dead heat in all competitions with each side winning two of the last five meetings and one draw. However, Columbus dealt the last blow when they beat NYCFC 1-0 at home in the USA US Open Cup 2026 eight weeks ago.
That was the Crew's second of three wins in their last seven home fixtures, with the other win coming when they overcame Atlanta United 2-0 at the same venue. Laurent Courtois has reset the Crew with a pragmatic approach, keeping the team compact in 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 shapes and tightening up in the transitions to try and restore the Crew identity.
NYCFC have some fresh attacking verve
Max Arfsten has chipped in with two of Columbus' six goals across the hosts' last five games, which is very useful in a game where Diego Rossi is usually the main finishing threat in MLS 2026, with six in 15.
Pascal Jansen's NYCFC play a possession-heavy, counterpressing game with wide overloads and fast rest-defense reactions when they lose the ball. They are in the same form as Columbus with two wins, one draw and two losses in their last five, but are on a losing run and their away results have been a little wobbly in 2026.
A 0-1 draw at New York Red Bulls in MLS 2026, a 1-0 defeat at Columbus in the USA US Open Cup 2026 and a 2-1 defeat to Nashville SC in MLS 2026, are the results they have picked up on their three most recent road trips. NYCFC have failed to win any of their three previous trips to Columbus in all competitions and that has to count against the visitors on Wednesday.
A close game with Columbus control
The draw is listed at 3.74, while Columbus are listed as slight favourites at 2.01 with NYCFC coming in at 3.77. That's a little confusing to me, but it could certainly prove profitable to take the 1X and under 3.5 goals angle as it fits the script.
This should be a close, tight matchup with Columbus' home form and recent head-to-head advantage giving them the edge, but NYCFC will be looking to control the play and stretch the game wide while the hosts will be happy to stay compact and pounce in transition.
Hannes Wolf has been on fire for NYCFC recently, scoring three of their six goals in their last five, and gives the City that hot-footed player that can produce something in a big game, while Nicolas Fernandez is the most reliable finisher with ten goals in 15 MLS 2026 games and three assists in their last five goals.
