COLUMBUS, Ohio — Dániel Gazdag and Ibrahim Aliyu scored in the second half, Max Arfsten had two assists and the Columbus Crew defeated the New York Red Bulls 3-1 on Saturday to close out the regular season.
Columbus (14-8-12) wraps up seventh place in the Eastern Conference with the victory, avoiding the wild-card round.
Gazdag used assists from Taha Habroune and Max Arfsten to score his fourth goal of the season and give Columbus a 2-1 lead in the 66th minute. Habroune's helper was his second in 18 appearances this season and 23 overall. Arfsten notched his eighth assist, matching his career-high set last season.
Aliyu subbed into the match in the 82nd minute and scored unassisted two minutes later for a two-goal advantage. It was Aliyu's third goal in 23 appearances with the Crew this