At this point in the 2015 season, several teams can claim they made the biggest signing of the offseason just based on said signing’s play on the field. Columbus Crew SC and Toronto FC are in the discussion if anything based on the addition of two players who’ve set opposing teams’ goal nets on fire: Kei Kamara and Sebastian Giovinco.
When the two Trillium Cup rivals take the field at MAPFRE Stadium on Saturday night, there remains the possibility that Columbus, OH could become ground zero for an offensive explosion of immense proportions. After all, the league’s top two scorers in Kamara and Giovinco will be attempting to continue their downright thermonuclear goal-scoring form. And let’s not forget, the latter has acquired the nickname “The Atomic Ant” as a result of what he’s capable of.
Let’s take a look at what this talented tandem of goal-scoring firepower has accomplished in 2015 so far. You can’t score if you don’t take any shots and these two are among the league leaders in that category. Giovinco leads MLS in total shots (106), shots per game (5.9) and shots on goal (44) with Kamara second or at least tied for second in all three stats (91 total shots, 4.3 shots per game, 38 shots on goal).
The high volume of attempts has clearly translated to actual goals. Just between the two of them, they have a combined 26 with Kamara enjoying a 14-12 edge. To put that in perspective, 189 players have scored a total of 504 goals in MLS up to this point. Kamara and Giovinco alone have accounted for 5.2 percent of that entire total.
They also possess the ability to provide on their teammates goal-scoring opportunities. Giovinco currently has nine assists which is tied for third in MLS with Philadelphia’s Cristian Maidana. Kamara’s a bit behind with just five helpers himself but it’s interesting to note that the Kamara to Finlay assist-goal combination is the fourth best partnership in the league.
To conceptualize how important Kamara and Giovinco are to their team’s overall offensive output, I’ve put together a chart that puts together the league leaders in what I’m going to call score sheet percentage. Basically, it’s a measure of how often certain players appear on the score sheet in either goal or assist form as a percentage of the team’s total goals.
It should be readily apparent upon initial view the regularity with which these two either find the net or facilitate their teammates’ ability to do so.
Despite the similarity in their production, the manner in which they go about accomplishing it is quite different. Kamara is as quintessential a number nine as you can get. This is highlighted by his exceptional ability to win the ball in the air. In total, he’s won a whopping 86 aerial duals this season which is tied for tops in MLS with the Vancouver Whitecaps Kendall Watson.
If you want video proof of this crucial characteristic of Kamara’s play, just have a look at this clip of Crew SC’s second goal against the Chicago Fire. In his comments post-game, the 30-year-old Sierra Leone native likened it to a basketball alley-oop.
The diminutive Giovinco gives up nearly a full foot in height to the 6’3″ Kamara. His craft as a playmaking number ten in many ways epitomizes the famous Muhammad Ali phrase “fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee” whereas Kamara’s more like a bull in a china shop as the Black and Gold’s target forward. The 5’4″, 135 pound Italian is as good as there is in the league at finding space both with his off-the-ball movement and in his distribution to teammates.
Exhibit A in that first quality was on display during Giovinco’s second goal in the wild 4-4 draw that took place between the Reds and New York City FC at Yankee Stadium on July 12th. Notice how he was able to time his run to coincide with when Collen Warner’s through ball was going to arrive at the feet of Jackson, who brilliantly flicked it onto the 28-year-old maestro. Giovinco decisively blasted the ball by NYCFC goalkeeper Josh Saunders for his second goal of the game and would later complete a jaw-dropping nine minute hat trick.
Might we see the same goal-scoring onslaught in Columbus this weekend? The recipe is there for such a scenario to occur. In the Bronx, you saw Giovinco and high-priced Spanish striker David Villa combine for five of the eight goals on the afternoon. You also saw both teams take advantage of shaky back line situations.
Columbus has also had their fair share of issues on defense. They seemed to rectify them in the home-and-home with Chicago last week where they were able to come away with full points. In particular, there seemed to be greater communication between central defenders and goalkeeper Steve Clark. Andrew King of MLSsoccer.com wrote about a defenders-only meeting after the 3-0 loss to Montreal that may have gotten everyone on the same page.
That said, being able to slow down Giovinco in Toronto’s central attacking midfield and Jozy Altidore up front is a whole different animal altogether. If they want to do so, it’s going to take an exceptional level of discipline and compactness on the part of the Crew SC back four. The outside backs will need to time their runs into the attacking third carefully to avoid getting caught on the counterattack. You don’t want the Atomic Ant isolated one-on-one with your middle defenders.
We may be nearly a month removed from the Fourth of July, but expect there to be fireworks galore on the pitch when these two rivals renew pleasantries Saturday night. More likely than not, it will be the clubs’ big-time offseason signings, Kamara and Giovinco, lighting the fuse.
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