Columbus Crew visit Cincinnati in opening round of MLS Cup Playoffs

Columbus Crew (14-8-12, sixth in the Eastern Conference during the regular season) vs. FC Cincinnati (20-9-5, second in the Conference during the regular season)

Cincinnati; Monday, 6:45 p.m. EDT

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: FC Cincinnati +130, Columbus +176; over/under is 3.5 goals

BOTTOM LINE: The Columbus Crew visit Cincinnati in the first round of the MLS Cup Playoffs.

Cincinnati is 13-9-4 against Eastern Conference teams. Cincinnati is 7-2-2 when it scores just one goal.

The Crew are 11-7-8 against Eastern Conference opponents. The Crew are sixth in the Eastern Conference with 154 shots on goal, averaging 4.5 per game.

The teams meet Monday for the third time this season. The Crew won the last meeting 4-2.

TOP PERFORMERS: Evander has 18 goals and 12 assists for Cincinnati. Brenner has scored four goals over the past 10 games.

Diego Rossi has 16 goals and three assists for the Crew. Daniel Gazdag has three goals and two assists over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Cincinnati: 5-3-2, averaging 1.3 goals, 6.2 shots on goal and 3.6 corner kicks per game while allowing 0.9 goals per game.

Crew: 2-4-4, averaging 1.5 goals, 5.0 shots on goal and 4.8 corner kicks per game while allowing 1.8 goals per game.

NOT EXPECTED TO PLAY: Cincinnati: Matt Miazga (injured), Brad Smith (injured).

Crew: Mohamed Farsi (injured), Wessam Abou Ali (injured), Diego Rossi (injured).

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.