Columbus Crew edged out Philadelphia Union 2-1 to maintain their strong start to the 2014 MLS season, but were made to work for their victory.
The visitors proved hard to break down in the early stages as their defensive organisation restricted the number of chances for Crew.
Indeed, Union almost took the lead on 13 minutes when Vincent Nogueira's shot forced Steve Clark to scramble low down to his right to keep the sides on level terms.
Columbus managed to edge themselves in front midway through the half when Federico Higuain found Bernardo Anor, who tucked the ball beyond Zac MacMath.
The Crew doubled their lead on the stroke of half time when Anor again latched onto a pinpoint pass, this time from Will Trapp, before slotting the ball home to give the hosts a comfortable advantage.
However, they were pegged back just after the hour mark when Sebastien Le Toux found Leonardo Fernandes, who tucked the ball home to give the away team hope of a late comeback.
The well-organised Union side went in search of an equaliser, but squandered several opportunities as Columbus held on to make it two wins from two.
Chris O'Keefe
