New York City FC (4 wins, 3 losses, 2 draws) welcomes the Columbus Crew (3-3-4) to Yankee Stadium for 7 p.m. ET kickoff Saturday. Below, we preview the New York City FC vs. Columbus Crew odds and lines, and make our best MLS bets, picks and predictions.
New York City FC, who took home the MLS Cup last season, have not gotten out to as strong as a start as they hoped for, sitting 6th on the Eastern Conference table.
NYCFC is led in scoring by 23-year-old F Valentín Castellanos. While they’ve scored 3 or more goals 4 times, they’ve also been held scoreless 4 times.
As for the Crew, they’ve also been relatively disappointing, sitting 9th on the East table.
Columbus is led by 2021 All-Star M Lucas Zelarayán. The Crew have not been playing well as of late, winning just 1 of their last 7 after notching 3 points in 2 of their first 3.
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New York City FC vs. Columbus Crew odds, lines, picks and predictions
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:30 a.m. ET.
- Money line: New York City FC -150 (bet $150 to win $100) | Columbus Crew +400 (bet $100 to win $400) | Draw +295
- Over/Under: 2.5 (O: -130 | U: +105)
[tipico]
Prediction
NYCFC 1, Columbus 1
Money line (ML)
LEAN DRAW +295.
It’s certainly just a lean, but the value on a draw is there.
After all, the Crew, whether it be playing up to the likes of the Red Bulls and Sporting KC or playing down to the likes ofSan Jose, have been drawing machines on the road.
They’ve drawn 4 of their 5 road games, and with NYCFC having scored 18 goals in 4 games and then just 1 in the other 5, their inconsistency helps add to this value. Both teams are coming off a draw as well.
With Zelarayán ranking fifth in the MLS in successful dribbles, he should be able to control the pace. Considering the value and how Columbus has played on the road, I’ll take the draw for a small unit.
Over/Under (O/U)
LEAN to the UNDER 2.5 (+105).
I don’t have a super-strong, full-unit play in this game, but I do like the Under. Again, it’s mainly due to the inconsistency both teams have shown this season.
NYCFC has been shut out in 4 games while Columbus had a stretch of 4 games itself where it didn’t tally a goal. Both teams also rank in the top half of the MLS in goals against.
NYCFC drew Sporting KC 0-0 their last time on the pitch while Columbus would’ve hit this under in 5 of its last 7. Generally speaking, it’s still a risky play, so I’d only lay about half a unit here.
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