Columbus Crew SC are leading the Eastern Conference – for the moment – and they don’t even care.
After Saturday’s 2-1 win over DC United at RFK Stadium and a New England Revolution blowout loss, Columbus jumped from fourth to first in the East. Head coach Gregg Berhalter’s sights, however, seem set far higher.
“It doesn’t mean anything right now,” he told MLSsoccer.com after the match. “It will mean something after the 34th game. Right now, it just means that we’ve been steady and we’ve been consistent with our efforts this year. It’s going to mean the most after the 34th game.”
If the club can maintain their scorching road streak, the top of the East seems a reasonable goal.
After waiting until July for their first, Columbus has won four straight and five of their last six road matches, by far the best mark in the league this year.
For Berhalter, keeping the same attitude whether in Columbus or on the road has been the key.
“It’s the mentality and the focus,” he said. “The guys knew it was going to be an extremely tough game today, and we went in with the right mentality. That was: We play our game away from home. We have the courage to keep playing, and when it gets tight we have the courage to keep playing. And when it gets tight, we stand together and we don’t break.”
The win was the club’s second straight 2-1 victory on the road that came with a large period of hard work and defending to close out the win.
Some had questioned Crew SC’s toughness and discipline after multiple comeback losses, but goalkeeper Steve Clark seems to think those days are behind the group.
“We’re able to win ugly, and we kind of have some grit to us, now,” he said. “That’s exciting for this team.”
For the second straight season, Columbus are getting hot at the right time.
With just four matches remaining, the club – led by MLS goal-scoring leader Kei Kamara, whose 21st goal of the season was the ultimate game winner – are on a 9-3-3 run in their last 15 games. And as the regular season winds down, the players know it’s time for the playoff push.
“This is the most important time of the season, really,” Kamara said. “It’s not just about making the playoffs, it’s about really being the top of the East. The best way for us to do that is to win games. Unfortunately, some of these games are on the road right now, so we really have to win our road games.”
They’ll know by the end of October whether they reached that goal, but for the time being, Berhalter seems convinced that his group has what it takes.
“We have confidence,” he said. “We’re a confident group right now. It’s down to the belief from the group that we can win any game, and I think that’s extremely important. … The belief from the guys is there. Now, it’s about executing.”
