Crew view
Thirty-two games remain, but suffering consecutive 2-1 losses at Portland and against visiting Philadelphia is not the ideal way for Crew SC to begin the defense of its Eastern Conference championship. Union midfielder Chris Pontius scored twice on Saturday and the Crew fell to 0-2 for the first time since 2006. Condition red? No, but “that’s not good,” sporting director and coach Gregg Berhalter said. He needs to look no further than Nationwide Arena to see how an unexpected early skid can derail a season.
Strike one
The Crew hogged the ball in the first half and had double the chances the Union did on Saturday, but it was Philadelphia that scored first.