Despite blasting their way to the brink of qualification for the FIFA World Club Cup in 2025, the Columbus Crew finally fell to Mexico´s proficient Pachuca in the CONCACAF (can somebody please check to see if this acronym can be cut a bit?) Champions Cup Final, 3-0, on June 1, 2024. But the Crew now have plenty to build on, especially as Canada´s youthful Jacen Russell-Rowe continues to blossom in attack behind veteran Colombian striker Cucho Hernández and ex-U.S. international Christian Ramirez.
Jacen Russell–Rowe Grows Up at Columbus
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Jacen Russell-Rowe bashed the ball off Pachuca´s crossbar in the 76th minute, but it wasn´t enough to bother top MX Liga keeper, Carlos Moreno. However, the 21-year-old Canadian international delivered the goods in the quarterfinals against the all-powerful Mexican Tigres UANL. He struck again in the semifinals to help drag down CF Monterrey, an even more impressive feat considering the latter had already bagged five titles in this elite competition. In the process, the Crew became the first MLS outfit to ever beat a Mexican juggernaut on the road.
For an MLS team to win in Mexico in the past seemed a little like eating cactus without a mouthguard. An even more difficult task was to win in Pachuca which sits prettily some 8,000 feet (2,438 meters) above sea level. While the Crew had a few acclimation bike rides at altitude before the Final, Jacen and the team didn´t offer any excuses. The passion that pours down onto the field from the Mexican fans is also a notch higher than MLS.
Thinking back on the two grand goals he scored to sink Tigres and then Monterrey, Jacen Russell-Rowe can still feel the closeness of the crazed crowds, the unique feel of the ball and field underfoot during such rarified moments, and the awareness that it was his time to step up, according to Jacob Schneider at goal.com.
“If I´m being honest, it´s something I hadn´t ever thought about or dreamed of to be in that moment. But once I was there, you realize how big it is. But I don´t let those things get the best of me. I look up into the crowd and I see the stadium and I see the fans roaring and I try to enjoy, and just kind of melt into the environment, and just let it sink in and not let the game get too big,” Jacen recalled. Heady stuff for a youngster who was just a teen only two years ago.
The real learning curve is taking place as Jacen Russell-Rowe runs out alongside his two elderly Columbus Crew teammates, Christian and Cucho. The American Ramirez has a cerebral approach to the game, alerting Russell-Rowe to details on the field as well as paying attention to “little things that will give you an edge on a defender.” In the meantime, the Colombian Hernández oozes confidence, and the aggressive and tireless approach Cucho brings, despite his short stature, makes opponents cringe.
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Mexican Fans Mean Business
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While about 400 Columbus Crew fans made the trek to Pachuca not far north of Mexico City. the local fans were ready for business. The Crew normally plays in front of 20,000 supporters who like to get loud inside Lower.com Field, especially when cross-state rivals FC Cincinnati pay a visit. But Pachuca´s home stadium holds at least double that number, with thousands more milling about outside. According to the relatively inexperienced Jacen Russell-Rowe, those Mexican fans are a breed apart.
“They´re very, very unified. They all know the chants, they all know what the team is about. And they´re cheering for 90 minutes straight. 90 minutes straight! You can feel the energy, the atmosphere, the whistling. And it´s always packed out. Like we were just in El Volcan (the Tigres Stadium) and then we´re in Monterrey´s, where there are like 40,000 fans. It´s definitely a little different and a little louder,” the Canadian concluded.
It´s safe to say that Jacen Russell-Rowe will feel right at home in the next FIFA World Cup to be jointly hosted by Canada, the U.S., and Mexico in 2026. After all, Jacen was born in the former, makes his living mostly in the middle, and sure knows how to score goals in the latter, no matter how loud it might get.
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Veteran soccer writer Will Beebe went to his first World Cup in person in Mexico in 1986 with his brother Seth. They felt the Mexican passion for all things football on that once-in-a-lifetime trip. | Connect with Will on X: @WABeebe11
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