The Major League Soccer regular season is by no means short, and Columbus Crew SC (4-4-3) will look to continue climbing the standings when it travels south to face Orlando City SC on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
Sporting Director and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter saw last week's 2-2 draw against Chicago as a teaching moment.
“It think it’s a good lesson,” Berhalter said. “Until the whistle blows, you have to keep playing. And one thing I say about the MLS is that there’s no shortage of stoppage time goals. So as far as I’m concerned, it was a good lesson in being smarter and finishing the game in a better way.”
Meanwhile, the lesson plan for this weekend will be on earning three points on the road.
For defender Michael Parkhurst, it’s a matter of bringing that home-match mentality.
“We want to do things the way we do at home,” Parkhurst said. “We want to bring the same energy, we want to dominate the ball; we want to play offensively. We want to do the things that make us successful when we win games.”
The first-ever meeting between the two clubs came on April 18 at MAPFRE Stadium with Columbus attaining the convincing 3-0 victory. Federico Higuaín, Justin Meram and Kei Kamara each tallied a goal, while the defensive unit held Orlando City star-striker, Kaká, largely silent.
This matchup will prove to be different than the first, now that the clubs have faced-off previously.
“We hadn’t played [Orlando City] in the MLS,” Berhalter said. “So, it [was] a little bit unknown and now we have a better hold of what they’re trying to do against us. I’m sure there will be some adjustments and we’ll probably make some adjustments as well.”
One modification Orlando City will have to make is playing without defender Brek Shea. Shea was suspended for one game after receiving a red card during the club’s 1-1 draw against San Jose.
Berhalter understands the magnitude of Shea’s absence, but has no doubt Orlando will find a suitable replacement.
“He’s a good player. He gives them a more dynamic attacking edge when he’s up there. So he’s not playing – we’ll deal with the next guy that comes in. I’m sure the next guy will be ready and try to prove why he deserves to be in the lineup,” Berhalter said.
Parkhurst echoed his coach’s sentiment.
"That’s fortunate for us. But that said, they still have Kaká. They’re dynamic, they keep the ball very well,” Parkhurst said. “Even as we saw in our home game, even though we played a good game, there were bouts of that game that they had really good possession against us. That’s definitely something we’re aware of and need to combat.”
Since its last matchup, Orlando City has accrued a 1-2-2 record, maintaining the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference and sitting just 2 points behind fourth-place Columbus. After coming off a 4-0 rout of LA Galaxy at the Citrus Bowl, Berhalter expects the highest level of play from the newly arrived expansion team.
“[Orlando] is going to try to carry that home form on,” Berhalter said. “And we’re going to have to resist and play our game and really try and take advantage of some of the weaknesses we saw last time with them.”
The Black & Gold matchup with the Lions will be the first of three matches within only a seven game span. For most, fatigue would certainly be a concern, but goalkeeper Steve Clark has no doubt Crew SC can maintain its stamina going forward
“Well we’re really fit, and the coaches will do their job making sure that we’re fresh to play,” Clark said.
For Clark and company, it’s about taking each match one at a time.
The goalkeeper emphasized, “But in the end, it’s just about being there in the moment and playing soccer.”
