After leaving as the Union’s top all-time goal scorer, Dániel Gazdag is eager to fit in with Columbus
Gazdag’s point production has been a shell of what he compiled over five seasons in Philly. However, he remains positive that he'll find his form.
All athletes go through it. Call it “the weird time.”
In baseball, it could be a prolonged hitting slump, in football, it’s a wide receiver who can’t understand a new playbook.
But for a soccer player like former Union midfielder-forward Dániel Gazdag, it’s going back to doing the things that led to him leaving as the club’s all-time leading goal scorer last season — even in the face of a complete redeployment of his skill set.
Gazdag was dealt to the Columbus Crew seven games into the Union’s 2025 season. Since then, his point production has been a shell of the 72 goals and 24 assists he compiled in all competitions over parts of five seasons in Philadelphia.
As a result, Gazdag, who was brokered to the Crew in a $4 million deal, plus incentives of up to an additional $500,000, has been trying to find his way amid his second season in Ohio.
He has appeared in just seven games this season, starting four, and his lone goal of the season came in the Crew’s 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Galaxy on April 22. Since joining Columbus, he’s far off the roughly 14 goals per season he scored in Philly.
» READ MORE: Sitting in last place, Union ‘can’t feel sorry for ourselves,’ Bradley Carnell says
It’s a stark reality for Gazdag, who was quite the commodity just a few years ago when he helped lead the Union reach its first MLS Cup final behind a 24-goal, six-assist season.
But to him, this is all in the process.
“Yeah, I was the main guy on the attack in Philly, which is what I really enjoyed,” Gazdag said before a reunion at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field against the Union on Saturday, in which he was a 70th-minute substitute to help close out the Crew’s 2-0 win. “Once I joined [the Crew], I really didn’t score as many goals as I expected, so, yeah, it’s just all about staying strong mentally, and I do that by surrounding myself with people who help me stay focused and not push me down.”
Born in Hungary, the 30-year-old Gazdag is not young in soccer years. He’ll even admit it. In fact, he considers himself “an experienced player,” in the sense that he understands the game and how his skill set translates to Major League Soccer.
» READ MORE: Watch: What's behind the Union's early struggles?
It was pretty straightforward as the target man in former Union manager Jim Curtin’s modified 4-2-3-1 formation.
Since Curtin, Gazdag has had three managers, all with varying philosophies on how to best deploy his talents. The result: A guy who always has had a natural nose for the goal sitting with just five since joining Columbus last season.
Before he was traded, Gazdag had bagged two in six matches for Bradley Carnell’s group, all starts.
“I spent the most time with Jim at Philly, and it was a great time with him,” Gazdag said. I really enjoyed playing under him. We played a 4-4-2 system with a diamond midfield, and I was kind of like the top of the diamond as a No. 10. I really liked that role, and it was obviously a successful period in my life.”
So what has changed over the last few seasons?
“Well, when Bradley [Carnell] came into Philly, he was a new coach with a new system,” Gazdag said. “It was still a 4-4-2; he changed it a little bit, where it felt more like a 4-2-2-2. But I didn’t spend too much time in that because I joined Columbus. [Former Crew manager] Wilfried [Nancy] is obviously a great coach, and his playing style is very unique. He was one of the best in the league, the way we played, and, obviously, Columbus was really successful under him, and I was happy to join.”
» READ MORE: How Philadelphia's World Cup setup became the envy of fans in New York, Boston, and beyond
But the confusion lies in how he has been deployed, positions in which he can get lost in the mix. The film of Gazdag’s time in Philly, when he was at his happiest, shows that he was a roaming midfielder allowed to make diagonal runs to stretch defenses for a teammate or make runs on to timely through balls into the final third.
In Columbus, Nancy and new manager Henrik Rydström deploy Gazdag a bit wider, running at opposition almost as a winger rather than a No. 10 allowed to move and create lanes.
Gazdag says it’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s just different.
In the system in Columbus, “we play with two attacking midfielders most of the time, and I was one of them,” Gazdag said. “But what [Nancy and Rydström] were asking of me was different. Instead of being that final man more or not, [I’m being asked] to be more involved with the ball and the buildup, so it’s just been a lot to learn as I haven’t had to play that way in the past.”
It would be easy for Gazdag to find fault or place blame in his situation, but he has many positives to discuss as he looks to return to form.
The highlights? Having his family back under one roof, as his quick move to Columbus last April didn’t coincide with two children in school in the Philly suburbs and a wife trying to manage it all remotely for a few months until they could settle in together. Gazdag lauded a fan base that, despite his still trying to fit the mold, has accepted him and “have been really great to play for.”
A season-ending torn right ACL for Crew striker Wessam Abou Ali could provide Gazdag an opportunity at more playing time and game-speed exposure under Rydström. And this season, a nearly two-month midseason break for the FIFA World Cup offers a much-needed recharge to refocus on getting back to the level of player he feels he still is.
“You never hope for an injury, and I feel really bad for [Abou Ali],” Gazdag said. “But these are things that can happen in this game, and that’s why I say you never know what’s going to happen and when you’ll get your opportunity to play.
» READ MORE: After Toronto debacle, Union looking to keep the ‘anomaly’ of missing out on points to a minimum
“Right now, I just try to do my job, working hard in training and being a player that’s ready when his name is called. Right now, for me, it’s about staying as fresh as I can mentally while continuing to surround myself with people that help me.”
And also remembering some of the great moments he had as the No. 10 in Philly.
“Oh yeah, I loved my time [with the Union],” Gazdag said. “I owe a lot to those fans, and I had great teammates. They were great years, and I’m excited to get that back here in Columbus or wherever my career takes me.”
Nine nations will compete in five group stage matches this summer, plus two more in a knockout game on July 4. Here’s what you need to know about those countries — and what those fans need to know about Philly. Click here for more.
