Amid tumult, team on road for key game

The elephant in the room will be in New York on Sunday as Crew SC takes on New York City FC at Citi Field.

At kickoff, the Crew will be only 127 hours removed from the announcement by Crew investor-operator Anthony Precourt that he is considering moving the Crew to Austin, Texas, after the 2018 season.

With bad news often comes a need for space, and the Crew will get a weekend away from what might be an awkward environment at Mapfre Stadium.

A win Sunday would ensure the Crew of at least a home game in the knockout round of the playoffs and, with losses by Chicago and Atlanta, a bye into the Eastern Conference semifinals. With a tie, the Crew would need Atlanta to lose in order to host a knockoutround game. With a loss, the Crew would open the playoffs on the road.

Crew SC (16-12-5) is 12-3-2 at home this season but just 4-9-3 on the road.

Still, recent events and emotions around Columbus beg the question: Is the Crew better off playing on the road Sunday and for the time being?

No, defender Hector Jimenez said.

“Listen, we want a home game, and everyone’s got that mentality right now,” Jimenez

said. “Everyone’s got that mentality in them, so our focus is to get three points away from home right now.”

The Crew will play for

a potential home game while carrying at least some of the weight of a tumultuous week in the Columbus soccer community.

“I completely understand the shock and the emotion of everything (Tuesday). It’s a sad thing. It really is, and I feel sad for all the fans that have been with us for so long,” coach Gregg Berhalter said Wednesday. “All the energy we’re putting in is for our fans and to try to give them some enjoyment, to try to give them some satisfaction and some pride.”

In trying to maintain the rhythm and focus that has propelled the club to its first ninegame unbeaten streak since 2009, practicing has been the easy part, said midfielder and captain Wil Trapp, a Gahanna native. After all, it’s two hours per day away from social media and the stresses of a situation over

which players have no control.

Trapp expects a similar escape during Sunday’s game.

“You can get away from everything,” Trapp said. “We’re players, we want to be on the field and we know that Sunday’s a massive game for us against a good opponent.

“It’s the most natural way to block out everything else.”

The Crew faces an NYCFC (16-9-8) team that has been near the top of the Eastern Conference standings for most of the season but could drop as low as fifth depending on how the day unfolds. New York City is 1-2-3 in its last six games and forward David Villa, who was limited last month with an abductor injury, has just one goal in NYCFC’s last seven games.

Sunday’s game also will be in an unfamiliar environment for NYCFC, which normally plays its home games at Yankee Stadium. The game was moved to Citi Field, home of the Mets, on Oct. 12 when the Yankees advanced to the American League Championship Series.

A common question from fans and media throughout the week has centered on the timing of the Precourt Sports Ventures announcement, which came on the eve of the playoffs and just days before a critical game.

Crew players haven’t dwelled on the same question.

“Is there ever a great time for something like this?” midfielder Justin Meram said. “I think for us, it’s sticking with the game plan and what we want to achieve on the field, and we’ll discuss later down the road what the options are.”