OBETZ, Ohio – Columbus Crew SC got a break from game action over the weekend, perhaps giving another of their new additions the time needed to get on the same page with his teammates ahead of Wednesday's game against New York City FC (7:30 pm ET, MLS LIVE).
“Why not?” Ghanaian fullback Harrison Afful said of playing in the club’s next match. “That’s why I’m here. If I’m given the chance, I’ll show what I can do on the field and listen to the coach on what he wants me to do while I’m on the field.”
Afful has been training with Columbus for about two weeks, traveling with the team to Colorado despite not making the game-day roster and training privately with coaches during the rest of the roster’s bye-week break. Head coach Gregg Berhalter said Afful’s fitness is not yet where it needs to be, but the defender is still hoping for a debut.
“I’m getting my fitness back,” he said. “I’ve been working a lot; so far, so good. So I’m just praying and hoping that I’ll make my debut next Wednesday.”
Meanwhile, Afful says he is enjoying his time in Columbus. The Ghanaian played for Tunisian top-flight club Espérance Sportive de Tunis for six seasons before his MLS move and believes he’s fitting in well with Crew SC.
“It’s been great,” he said. “Since the first day I got to the city, everyone has been nice to me. I really love the guys, and everyone is doing his best to do something for the club. That’s my point of view.”
Afful admitted that he “didn’t dream of coming to MLS” but was wooed by a call from Berhalter – a common theme among the Columbus boss’ signings.
“For me, what brought me here was the conversation with [Berhalter],” Afful said. “For me, as a football player, the relationship with you and coach is more important. So that’s what brought me here.”
But the growing reputation of the league – and marquee names – also interested Afful.
“One more important thing is that big names are coming to MLS,” he said. “So it makes it more enjoyable for everybody. So I’m really happy to be here. More international players are coming here from more countries, so it makes it more competitive for the whole world to come to the MLS game.”
While Afful is clearly ready to play, Berhalter is not one to make promises, especially not before he judges the defender to be fully match-fit.
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Letting new signings adjust has been a hallmark of Berhalter’s time in Columbus. Last season he signed Emanuel Pogatetz in the summer, and the Austrian defender did not start for the remainder of the season. Berhalter has said Argentine defender Gastón Sauro playing a similar role.
“The key is where they’re coming from,” he said. “If you’re coming from Scandinavia where you’ve been playing and you’re in regular season, you’re ready to go. Some of these guys coming from European teams have been on vacation for six weeks, and it’s more difficult. We saw that last year with Pogatetz. This year we’re seeing it with Harrison a little – he was off for a few weeks – and with Gastón, he’s been training regularly … but we expect him to be behind the rest of the group in fitness.”
But that is not an indictment of the individuals, Berhalter clarified, and he said it does not mean Afful and Sauro will not appear this season.
“Any European team right now is behind our group,” he said. “Take Manchester United – they’re behind our group in fitness. They just started their season. So we’re in the last third of the season. We’re 100-percent fit. These guys are machines right now. Take ability out. From a pure fitness standpoint, all European teams are behind MLS.”
