Columbus Crew star Lucas Zelarayan broke a record on Wednesday night when he scored the longest free-kick in MLS history.
Zelarayan started in attacking midfield for the Crew as they travelled to face Charlotte FC in a rearranged fixture. As the clash entered the 36th minute, a series of remarkable events ended with the Crew celebrating the opening goal of the game.
Charlotte midfielder Ben Bender attempted to catch Crew keeper Eloy Room off guard with a shot from midfield, but the Curaçao international was alive to the danger. Less than 30 seconds later, Zelarayan was fouled just inside the Crew's attacking half, with the Armenian stepping up to take it.
After forcing a Charlotte player to back away the necessary 10 yards, Zelarayan looked up to see keeper Kristijan Kahlina way off his line. After a short run-up, the Crew star fired the ball towards the goal, with Kahlina left stranded 15 yards out.
Zelarayan's shot sailed over the keeper's head and into the goal, with the midfielder running off to celebrate with his team and their coaching staff. According to the MLS, it was the longest distance from which a free-kick has been scored from since the stat was first recorded in 2010.
The previous record was 52 yards, set by Colorado's Jamie Smith in May 2011. Zelarayan bettered Smith's attempt by four yards, adding to his reputation for scoring from long distance.
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Since arriving in the MLS in 2020, Zelarayan has notched 17 goals from outside the box, more than double any other player in that timespan. He is now level with Robert Warzycha for the most set-piece goals in the Crew's history.
It was also his 10th goal of the campaign and when paired with his 11 assists means he has become just the third player in club history to register double digit goals and assists in a single season.
Zelarayan's incredible strike was added to by team-mate Luis Diaz early in the second-half. But things went downhill from there for the Crew, with Charlotte fighting back to claim a 2-2 draw.
The Crew can still book a place in the MLS play-offs if they win their final game of the season. But boss Caleb Porter was still left disappointed that his side had not claimed the three points after Zelarayan's brilliance.
“Obviously, result-wise, it’s not what we wanted. It’s not a win, it’s a draw, but it gives us a chance, depending on other results, if we win the last game, to get into the playoffs. Even if we won this game, we were probably in the same situation where we had to win the last game or possibly get a draw,” he said.
"Guys need to remember the good play that we had and learn from a couple situations, obviously, where we didn’t attack the ball in the box. We need to play a little bit more, not just go too direct.
"Dumping balls up to Cucho (Hernandez) and Lucas (Zelarayan) isn’t a good plan for 45 minutes, so there’s a little bit there in terms of decision-making. But ultimately, we put ourselves in a situation with the last game where we can go and win and be in, hopefully."
