Mendoza Scores for Columbus Crew Within the Last Few Minutes at CONCACAF Game

A. Mendoza scored within the last minute for Columbus Crew in their CONCACAF Champion League Group B Game against Mexican Team Santos Laguna in a hotly contested second half.

Mendoza was attempting to play in one of the areas when the ball was deflected to his area just outside the Santos goalpost.

He then kicked the ball directly in the goal net, surprising M. Becerra, the goal keeper for Santos Laguna, who was unable to block it.

The result was the only goal and score for Columbus Crew and a revenge for its previous loss to Santos duing one of the CONCACAF Champion League games in Mexico.

While the first half was uneventful, the second half of the game picked up full steam with both teams attempting to score the first goal.

The tempers started to flare with the result of yellow cards being issued by the referee Courtney Campbell.

The first yellow card was issued by the referee Courtney Campbell to E. Gavin of the Crew for kicking the ball into the net after the whistle was blown within 41 minutes.

The second yellow card was issued to O. Peralta of Santos after a boot challenge to Marshall within 64 minutes.

Santos Laguna received a free kick after K. Burns received a yellow card within 73 minutes for insubordination to a referee.

The last yellow card was issued for F. Hedjuk for a two foot tackle towards the end of the game and a minor fight in the field. Hedjuk was lucky because he could have been expelled.

The Columbus Crew and Santos Laguna teams were disciplined, consistent, and dominant in the field as well as the game.

It is not surprising taking into account that Santos Laguna is within the first top ten teams of the Mexican League while Columbus Crew is in first place in the MLS Eastern Conference.

The result of the game leaves Columbus Crew in first place in Group B CONCACAF Champions League followed by Santos Launa. It remains to be seen what will transpire.

Columbus Crew 1-0 Santos Laguna

Columbus Crew Stadium Columbus Ohio

Most Valued Player: Mendoza