3 Questions: A look at the Columbus Crew with Tyler Fisher of Massive Report

The Columbus Crew aren’t off to the best of starts in 2026.

That’s kind of a weird sentence to type, given how well they’ve played in recent years. Under Wilfried Nancy, the Crew was a juggernaut, winning MLS Cup in 2023 and coming a win away from a Concacaf Champions Cup trophy in 2024. Now, though, a new coach is in the technical area: former Malmö boss Henrik Rydström, who took over for Nancy after the Frenchman was hired at Celtic. Five matches into the season, Columbus (0-3-2) is looking for its first win as it faces Atlanta United on Saturday.

For more on the Columbus Crew, I connected with Tyler Fisher (X, Bsky) from Massive Report (X, Bsky).

What is the biggest difference between Henrik Rydström’s tactical style and the tactical style of Wilfried Nancy? Is the Crew’s winless start simply down to adjusting to that change, or something different?

I wouldn’t say there is a major difference. What I will say is Rydström isn’t scared to try things differently. When the Crew were under Nancy, we saw Diego Rossi playing up top with Daniel Gazdag and Wessam Abou Ali. Most recently, Rossi has been playing a right mid position, allowing Taha Habroune to be partnered with Abou Ali. Similar styles of play, however. But there isn’t much of a difference. The winless start can be a factor, but small things from years past are creeping back in. Columbus can’t close out games, they concede late and it’s just not good enough. 

The Crew’s acquisition of Daniel Gazdag was a big one, with Gazdag signing a contract extension shortly after being traded from the Union. Not only has he not produced the way he did in Philly, but he seems to fallen out of favor with Rydström. How can he get things going?

Rydström says Gazdag is still in his plans. But I see that being short lived very soon. If Gazdag wants to make himself a staple in this team, he needs to get his confidence back and that starts with playing free. We saw under Nancy that it was a definite adjustment given the style of play under Jim Curtin and the little time he played under Bradley Carnell in Philadelphia. We know he has the talent, but I feel he doesn’t feel like he does, because of how demanding of the ball Columbus is now. He had a couple of chances against Sporting Kansas City that he could’ve gotten goals, but they were wasted in front of net. Just get out of his head, fight for a position and play free.

How can Atlanta United find success against the Crew on Saturday?

Attack the backline hard. This is a backline that has no depth to it at all. Rydström has favored veteran Rudy Camacho so far this season, leaving the only true center back Yevhen Cheberko on the bench. This is also a leaky backline that allows goals in the last quarter hour of the match (3). Finally, man marking Abou Ali. Nashville, Chicago and Toronto FC showed that if you limit touches with the striker, he can not be dangerous and gets frustrated very easily. I do not have confidence that Columbus will win this game, let alone get a point.