Federico Higuaín’s influence on the second half of the Columbus Crew’s season has been well documented. He was named the MLS Newcomer of the Year, largely in part to his immediate impact upon joining the team in August. In Higuín, the Crew got an extremely dangerous weapon that would be a benefit to any attack in MLS. The Argentine scored five goals and dished out seven assists in only thirteen games and formed a dangerous pairing with Jairo Arrieta.
In this recent article on Fox Soccer’s website, Kyle McCarthy compares the lives of Federico and his more famous younger brother, Gonzalo. Gonzalo Higuín plays for the world famous Real Madrid and is one of the most prolific forwards in all of soccer. However, the most important tidbit of the article is that Federico has been named Fox Soccer’s MLS Player of the Year. This is quite an honor, especially considering that he did not even play in half of Columbus’ games. Federico has Crew fans licking their chops thinking of all the havoc he could possible wreck in a full season and, more importantly, the trophies he could bring to the club.
Columbus also recently unveiled the entirety of their preseason schedule.
The club announced their planned participation in the Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic earlier this month. The Pro Soccer Classic will run from February 9-23. Following the competition, the Crew will return to Ohio to prepare for MLS First Kick. Columbus travels to Los Angeles to play Chivas USA on March 2nd in the first game of the new season.
Before the Pro Soccer Classic, the Crew will have already spent a week training in Bradenton, Florida. Here is the entire preseason schedule for the team:
Jan. 17: Preseason camp opens
Jan. 18-23: Team trains in Columbus
Jan. 24: Team departs for Bradenton, Florida
Feb. 2: Crew returns to Columbus
Feb. 6: Crew departs for Orlando, Florida
Feb. 6-24: Pro Soccer Classic/Central Florida Sports Commission’s Soccer Spring Training
Feb. 9: Crew vs. Toronto FC – 1:00 p.m. ET*
Feb. 13: Crew vs. Philadelphia Union – 1:00 p.m. ET*
Feb. 16: Crew vs. Orlando City SC – 6:00 p.m. ET*
Feb. 23: Pro Soccer Classic Championship Day – Time TBD*
Feb. 24: Crew departs from Orlando, Florida
*Pro Soccer Classic games
Be Massive.
