Minnesota United draws with Columbus Crew on Tani Oluwaseyi’s stoppage-time goal

Mere minutes after his teammates chased him down the field in sheer celebration, Minnesota United forward Tani Oluwaseyi ran postgame sprints with the team’s other substitutes.

Is that any way to treat the afternoon’s hero?

He scored the tying goal in second-half stoppage time — the 94th minute, 27th second, to be precise — in a 1-1 draw with defending MLS Cup champion Columbus Crew on Saturday in the Loons’ home opener at sold-out Allianz Field.

Oluwaseyi’s revolving left-footed shot from the right side of the 18-yard box turned Joseph Rosales’ long, careening throw-in from the left sideline into his first MLS goal, in his fourth league appearance.

He turned and shot into the far upper left corner after Crew keeper Patrick Schulte came off his line and then couldn’t get back in time.

“I just said, ‘God be with the ball,’” Oluwaseyi said, “and it worked out for me.”

DJ Taylor, Hassani Dotson, Micky Tapias and Loïc Mesanvi chased after him, running and leaping, as he raced back upfield, hoping unsuccessfully to get the ball in play one more time for victory.

Instead, Oluwaseyi soon found himself running sprints toward the Wonderwall, as he and other reserve players do for conditioning.

“Yeah, we usually do sprints after the game,” he said. “I’m not exempt, regardless of what happens. I joined the guys to make sure we get our workload in.”

No passes, not just this once? Not after he saved the day?

“No passes,” Oluwaseyi said. “No passes here.”

The Loons drafted him 17th overall in the 2022 MLS SuperDraft out of St. John’s University in New York, after an injury-interrupted college career. He scored 13 goals, including four in one game, when loaned out to USL Championship side San Antonio FC last season and is one of the young players Loons management is hoping provide second-half energy for a team intending to press higher up the field.

MATCH REPORT: Loons 1, Columbus 1

Last week, the five young substitutes contributed to Alejandro Bran’s winning goal in stoppage time of a 2-1 victory at Austin FC to open the season. Oluwaseyi set up the goal with an unselfish pass on the run.

On Saturday, young subs produced Oluwaseyi’s tying goal after last week’s subs Bran and Caden Clark moved into the starting 11 because of injuries to Emanuel Reynoso, Robin Lod and Franco Fragapane, as well as Bongokuhle Hlongwane, who isn’t deemed game fit yet. So in came Moses Nyeman, Mesanvi and Jordan Adebayo-Smith as well.

“So far, so good,” Oluwaseyi said about using five young subs. “We’ve done a good job contributing on both sides of the ball. It has worked out so far.”

Columbus’ goal in the 59th minute from MLS Cup MVP Cucho Hernández, on a volley outside the 18-yard box, stood all afternoon as the go-ahead goal — until Oluwaseyi’s tying goal left the Crew stunned and arguing that four minutes’ stoppage time seemed awful long.

“It just ticked down to 94 [minutes] and I kept looking at the ref, to make sure he’s not moving the whistle to his lips,” Oluwaseyi said. “When I saw that wasn’t happening, then I said, ‘OK, we’re going to get one more.’”

The draw gives the Loons four points in their first two games.

“Fantastic finish,” Loons interim coach Cameron Knowles said. “I thought the boys deserved a point out of that. … Again our subs came in and changed the game for us. They brought energy. They brought life. We forced some turnovers in dangerous areas. The guys were rewarded with a point at the end.”

The announced crowd was 19,906 on a sunny, 60-degree late winter’s day.

“Beautiful day, a full house and a good finish,” Knowles said. “I just hope the supporters are going home happy and proud of the guys on the field.”