Cucho Hernandez was on target as Columbus Crew defeated Mexico’s Monterrey 2-1 in their Concacaf Champions Cup semifinal first leg clash in Ohio on Wednesday.
The Colombian forward delivered a sparkling performance capped with a well-taken first-half goal to help Columbus take a slender advantage into next week’s return in Mexico.
Jacen Russell-Rowe headed home the winner for Columbus from a corner on 72 minutes after Maximiliano Meza had leveled for Monterrey just after halftime.
The MLS champions — who produced a stunning upset of Monterrey neighbor Tigres in the quarterfinals — once again proved to be more than a match for Liga-MX opposition.
Monterrey started brightly and could have taken the lead through U.S. international forward Brandon Vazquez, whose snap shot from six yards out was well-saved by Crew goalkeeper Patrick Schulte after six minutes.
But after that early scare, Columbus dominated for long periods, with Cucho at the heart of most of the attacks at Lower Field.
The Colombian almost set up an opener for Diego Rossi on 17 minutes, but the Uruguayan directed his attempted finish just wide of the post.
Moments later, Hernandez saw a vicious shot well-saved by Monterrey goalkeeper Esteban Andrada.
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