Two Columbus Crew SC players honored in MLS Team of the Week

Two Crew SC players were honored for their performance this week. Justin Meram and Nicolai Naess were selected to be part of the MLS Team of the Week.

Both players have been impressive this season. Meram has stolen the headlines in recent weeks with his performances and Naess has quietly been a leader for the defense.

Meram is remaining quite mum about his recent run of form but teammate Josh Williams sees no issue in spearheading “J9 for MVP” campaign. The winger actually felt that he didn’t play his best this week citing “poor positioning” in the first half. Despite his claims, it was Meram’s go-ahead goal in the 44th minute of Saturday’s match that saw Crew SC win the first match of the Trillium Cup against Toronto FC, 2-1.

Naess is a player that doesn’t get enough recognition. Once again, he was paired up with rookie defender Alex Crognale on Saturday and the two thrived. Naess has been quite adaptable this season, playing alongside a a rotating cast of central defenders. Between Jonathan Mensah, Williams and Crognale, most would defenders would struggle to find chemistry. Not Naess.

Naess and Crognale thrived as they kept forwards Sebastian Giovinco and Jozy Altidore in check throughout the majority of this most recent match. Naess also blocked four shots and had four key clearances in the Columbus defensive zone.

The Black & Gold will look to improve on their Eastern Conference-best record this week against the New York Red Bulls. You can bet that if another three points is on the way, these two players will have something to say about it once again.