Last season was not one many Columbus Crew SC fans are going to remember fondly. After back-to-back playoff appearances and a run to MLS Cup in 2015, the club finished with a losing record and six points out of a postseason spots.
One issue for the Black & Gold was the lack of Federico Higuain.
The Argentinian playmaker is a key cog in the Crew SC offense, but played in only 20 games, his fewest since his debut season of 2012, due to sports hernia injury.
“My injury, that was very bad,” Higauin recently stated on conference call from Columbus’ preseason trip to Brazil.