Berhalter, players talk of improving in offseason
The minutes after taking a 1-0 series loss to Toronto FC in the Eastern Conference finals provided Crew SC with a wide range of emotions.
Players processed their disappointment at narrowly missing their second MLS Cup final in three years and replayed the moments that might have put them over the top.
It wasn’t yet time to do an audit of the 2017 season or look ahead to 2018. That will come.
“There’s no reflection at the moment,” midfielder Wil Trapp said after the loss. “It’s been 10 minutes, 15 minutes since the game ended. It’s just disappointing.”
In a way, Trapp said, it was good for the Crew to feel the heartache of a season cut short. The emotion, he said, was a reflection of the team’s belief and growth.
The Crew finished a goal shy of knocking off a Toronto team considered one of Major League Soccer’s best ever. Now, the focus for the Crew shifts to improvement over the next two months to avoid a hangover and provide the pieces necessary to push the team a step farther.
“We get better, right? Isn’t that the name of the game?” coach and sporting director Gregg Berhalter said. “Every season, you want to get better. Our job now is to get better and build a better team for next season.”
That process has been in the works for months in the form of scouting, but it will officially kick off Friday, the deadline for non-MLS Cup participants to inform the league as to which players’ options will be exercised for 2018.
On Dec. 10, teams have a four-hour window to sign and trade players. On that day, MLS also will release the list of players available in Los Angeles FC’s Dec. 12 expansion draft.
Many of the Crew’s key players — Justin Meram, Wil Trapp, Ola Kamara and Pedro Santos, to name a few — are under contract beyond next season, but improvement means — as it does for most teams — at least some roster turnover.
For the Crew, that means adding talent and building competition at several positions on a budget, as it did this season.
“On a team that doesn’t have a huge budget, like us, you’ve got to make the right moves, you’ve got to pick the right people, and I thought (Berhalter) did an unbelievable job” this season, defender Josh Williams said. “I love this team, and I’m proud of the guys.”
The language Berhalter and players used after the game Wednesday suggests that they think it’s a small gap to bridge to reach the next level of success. Trapp spoke of the “inches” separating the Crew from a cup final. Goalkeeper Zack Steffen addressed the “little pieces” the team might need.
Added Williams: “We’re not far off.”
“I mean 1-0 (loss against the) Supporters’ Shield (winners), the greatest team in MLS history, and we just pushed them to the limit,” he said. “Any other day, maybe we’re in the final.”