FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The Columbus Crew took a significant step towards the Eastern Conference crown by defeating the New England Revolution 1-0 at Gillette Stadium.
Chad Marshall scored the only goal of the game in the 35th minute from a Robbie Rogers corner kick as the Crew extended their lead atop the conference to eight ahead of the second-place Revolution despite Frankie Hejduk's 65th-minute red card. The win also extended the Crew's unbeaten streak to seven games (6-0-1).
Revs boss Steve Nicol opted for a 4-4-2 formation with club captain Steve Ralston lining up in a familiar right wing role. Khano Smith missed out with a hamstring injury, allowing Mauricio Castro to take his place on the left wing. Kenny Mansally partnered with Taylor Twellman. The recovering Kheli Dube had to settle for a place on the bench.
Former Revolution striker Pat Noonan filled in for Guillermo Barros Schelotto for the third consecutive game. Noonan operated behind target striker Alejandro Moreno in the Crew's 4-4-2 formation. Crew coach Sigi Schmid made one change from last weekend's 3-1 win against New York. The injured Stefani Miglioranzi dropped out of the starting lineup with a right leg contusion and the recovered Brad Evans started in his place.
The Crew's high pressure tactics forced the Revs onto the back foot in the early stages as the Revs sought to up the tempo to compensate. Despite some early pressure, the Crew only had Frankie Hejduk's yellow card to take from it.
New England improved soon after and enjoyed its best stretch of the opening half. Castro's cross from the left found Twellman at the near post. The Revs striker attempted an audacious back heel out of the air but saw a late dive by Will Hesmer push his effort around the post.
Twellman then dragged an effort -- created by a Mansally dummy and a Ralston dish -- just wide of the far post as the Revs continued to threaten.
The resurgence would be short lived as the Crew's high pressure tactics dictated the tempo of the game. Rogers started to influence the match on the left wing. A bullish run from Moreno down the right side warded off Michael Parkhurst and crossed for Rogers to flash over the bar.
A critical sliding tackle by Gabriel Badilla then thwarted a Noonan run inside the penalty area as he shaped to shoot towards goal.
Moreno would then force Reis to push away a low shot at the near post after Rogers' run allowed Moreno to cut inside Badilla to create some space.
The imminent breakthrough came 10 minutes before the break as the Revs conceded their first corner kick goal of the season. Rogers' corner kick to the far post caught the Revs defense out and the unmarked Marshall thundered his header home at the back stick.
New England sought to improve after the break. Mansally could have done better after neat interplay from Shalrie Joseph and Twellman sent him through, but his hesitation allowed Hejduk to recover and slide in to clear the danger.
Nicol turned away from the 4-4-2 scheme, sending on Kheli Dube and Sainey Nyassi while yanking Badilla and Mansally in an attempt to spark his team.
The immediate benefit came down the other end of the field as Hejduk first-timed a Rogers pull back only to see Jay Heaps slide in to block the effort.
Hejduk then lost his head for a moment with 25 minutes to play and earned his second yellow card for interfering with Reis as he attempted to punt the ball up field.
The extra man urged the Revolution forward. Hesmer was alert enough to come out and challenge Nyassi after Ralston tried to slide the Gambian midfielder in towards goal.
But the surge the Revs hoped to find never really materialized as the Revs struggled to threaten in the final third despite ample pressure and the Crew completed a double over the Revs in the last four matches.
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