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Columbus Crew midfielder Aiden Morris dribbles with the ball.
Columbus Crew midfielder Aiden Morris dribbles with the ball.
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MLS Cup champion coach Wilfried Nancy welcomes his former club to his current home in Ohio. 

The Columbus Crew hosts CF Montreal on Saturday night, April 27 at Lower.com Field in downtown Columbus, Ohio. It's the first matchup of the season between these two Eastern Conference foes. 

Nancy and the Crew have been managing the roster while the team continues to play in the CONCACAF Champions Cup in addition to MLS play. The Crew are the final MLS team left in the competition and earlier this week, they beat Monterrey, 2-1, at home in the first leg of the semifinal. 

With the second leg coming up next Wednesday, there's a possibility that Nancy could rest some stars against Montreal. We may see Sean Zawadzki, Taha Habroune, and Derrick Jones all make starts. 

Montreal meanwhile has just 11 points from their first eight MLS matches and has lost three-straight road matches. This could be their chance to turn around their road fortunes and get back into the playoff picture. 

Columbus Crew vs CF Montreal live stream, TV channel

  • Date: Saturday, April 27, 2024
  • Time: 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT
  • TV channel: None
  • Streaming: Apple TV

MORE: Find out which games are streaming free on MLS Season pass from Apple TV each week

This MLS match, along with every other game through the entirety of the 2024 regular season and postseason, will be available to stream on MLS Season Pass from Apple TV.

This match has been selected as one of Apple's FREE matches, meaning viewers don't need to have the MLS Season Pass to watch it.

If Columbus Crew vs. CF Montreal is not available to watch live in your location or if you’re traveling abroad, you can use a Virtual Private Network (VPN). VPNs offer a secure and private online connection, allowing you to bypass geographical restrictions to access your favorite streaming services from any device anywhere in the world.

WATCH FROM ANYWHERE: Sign up for NordVPN (30-day moneyback guarantee)

What time is Columbus Crew vs CF Montreal kickoff?

This MLS regular season match kicks off from Lower.com Field on Saturday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m. local time in Columbus, Ohio.

Here's how that time translates across all of the time zones in the United States:

  Date Kickoff time
Eastern Time Sat, Apr. 27 7:30 p.m.
Central Time Sat, Apr. 27 6:30 p.m.
Mountain Time Sat, Apr. 27 5:30 p.m.
Pacific Time Sat, Apr. 27 4:30 p.m.
Alaska ST Sat, Apr. 27 3:30 p.m.
Hawaii ST Sat, Apr. 27 2:30 p.m.

Columbus Crew vs CF Montreal lineups, team news

Coach Wilfried Nancy has almost a full roster available for this match, though striker Christian Ramirez is still out with an injury. With a 2-1 lead over Monterrey ahead of the second leg, we could see players like Aiden Morris, Darlington Nagbe, and Cucho Hernandez getting a rest in this match. Even if he doesn't start, 18-year-old Taha Habroune is one to watch for the future. 

Columbus Crew projected starting lineup (3-4-2-1): Schulte (GK) — Moreira, Cheberko, Amundsen — Farsi, Jones, Zawadski, Sands — Habroune, Yeboah — Russell-Rowe.

Columbus Crew subs (9): (Lineups released one hour prior to kickoff)

Despite their struggles this season, Montreal has picked up four points from their last two games, with four goals scored in that span. Without Matias Coccaro and Josef Martinez, Mason Toye stepped up and scored a goal as did Ariel Lassiter, son of former U.S. Men's National Team star Roy Lassiter. 

While Coccaro will be out long term, Martinez could return this week, which is a big boost for Laurent Courtois' squad. 

CF Montreal projected starting lineup (3-4-3): Sirois (GK) — Campbell, Waterman, Sosa — Ruan, Piette, Choiniere, Edwards — Toye, Martinez, Lassiter.

CF Montreal subs (9): (Lineups released one hour prior to kickoff)

Columbus Crew vs CF Montreal prediction

This match comes at a tough time for the Crew. With so much focus on Wednesday's second leg in Monterrey, it's one of those trap games where the Crew could lose focus and end up losing at home. However, Nancy's side is unbeaten in 20 matches at home and should have enough talent, even with some rotation, to take care of Montreal. 

Prediction: Columbus Crew 2-1 CF Montreal

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Author(s)
Daniel Karell Photo

 

Daniel is a freelance soccer writer for The Sporting News. Before joining TSN, Dan covered soccer at home and abroad for 8 years between SBI Soccer and NBC's Pro Soccer Talk. Dan's also worked as a full-time news and sports journalist and as a UX copywriter for two Fortune 50 firms. In his free time (if he has any), Dan enjoys relaxing with his wife, playing with his two kids, and walking his 8-year-old Olde English Bulldogge (yes, that's how it is spelled).