The New York Red Bulls and Columbus Crew SC will soon be facing off in the Eastern Conference Championship series, but it wasn't that long ago that they locked horns in the title game.
Despite playing in the same conference, the Red Bulls and Crew SC met in MLS Cup in 2008 at the Home Depot Center (now StubHub Center) outside LA. Because of MLS's rules that year, the Red Bulls were in the Western Conference playoff bracket, and advanced to the MLS Cup with a team that included Colombian striker Juan Pablo Angel.
It was Sigi Schmid-led Columbus that prevailed, however, taking a 3-1 decision to lift its first MLS Cup trophy. Highlights from that match, which saw Guillermo Barros Schelotto take home MVP honors after notching three assists, can be seen above.
Now both clubs will square off this Sunday in the first leg of their Eastern Conference Championship series (5 pm ET; ESPN and ESPN Deportes in the US, MLS LIVE in Canada) at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus. Crew SC are expecting Wil Trappto play a key role in disrupting the Red Bulls' highly-success pressing style while the Red Bulls are preparing to face a succesful foe with a much different philosophy than theirs.
