Offense seeing what Santos can do

Completing a buildup that lasted more than a minute Saturday in Crew SC’s second and final game at the Pacific Rim Cup in Honolulu, Pedro Santos quickly slid a pass to Gyasi Zardes for an easy onetouch score.

The combination for the game’s opening goal is one the Crew hopes to see more of as the team transitions at the striker position from an 18-goal scorer in Ola Kamara to what it hopes is a resurgent Zardes.

It came with a minor wrinkle, however. Santos, who normally plays on the right wing, provided the assist from the left side of the box. Coach Gregg Berhalter called the 29-yearold’s extended look on the left side a “variation” as the Crew looks to add another starting-caliber wing to help make up for the late January trade of left winger Justin Meram to Orlando City.

“We have a very good understanding of how (Santos) performs on the right side of the field, and we want to look at how he can fit in on the left side,” Berhalter said Wednesday on a conference call. “I think what it does is it opens up your options when you’re searching for potential players to bring in. So we’re looking at him on both sides.

“We saw him in the first couple (of preseason) games (in Arizona) on the right side getting some shots coming in onto his left foot, so it’s looking at all those types of variations to see how we can potentially fit in his game, but also adding a new player.”

Regardless of his positioning in the attack, Santos will again be an integral part of an offense Berhalter said is still coming together as players grow accustomed to one another.

“What we’ve seen so far in preseason is that usually takes the longest time, the offensive quality to shine through,” Berhalter said. “The defense is what’s easier to maintain when you’re tired through a preseason, but we’ve been happy with the goals we’ve been scoring.”

Sosa shines

Venezuelan midfielder Eduardo Sosa, 21, was one of the surprises of the Crew’s two games in Hawaii, providing two assists in a 5-3 win over sixth-division Japanese club Iwaki FC on Saturday.

“The thing I like about Eduardo is he’s been improving every single session, every single game,” Berhalter said. “His level of improvement has been outstanding so far.”

Injury update

Berhalter said midfielder Mike Grella and defender Gaston Sauro, both of whom are in the final stages of recovering from knee injuries, are “getting … back to full strength.” Neither played in Hawaii.

Second-year wing Niko Hansen pulled up with a hamstring injury late in the Crew’s Friday morning game against Japanese club Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo and will be limited during the team’s trip to Charleston, South Carolina, which begins Thursday. Defender Josh Williams will be limited with “a little bit of Achilles pain,” Berhalter said.

“Other than that, we’re full,” Berhalter said. “We’ll be ready to go.”