Thursday morning saw some jolting but ultimately unsurprising developments out of Columbus.
It was then that Columbus Crew SC announced that they had traded Kei Kamara to the New England Revolution. In return, the Black and Gold will be receiving a mix of general allocation money and targeted allocation money. The club also acquired the Revs first round pick in the 2017 MLS Superdraft, their second round pick in 2018 and an additional international roster slot for this season.
This came as a bit of a shock considering any news on a potential deal was expected to have broken the previous night. There had been reports ahead of the 1 am trade deadline which had Kamara going to the Vancouver Whitecaps. Crew SC would have gotten Uruguayan forward Octavio Rivero in return.
All of this projects a cloud of uncertainty over the rest of Columbus’ season. Just nine games in, Crew SC has been forced to jettison a player who had scored a combined 31 goals for the club. And until the summer transfer window opens on July 4th, they will have to make do with their existing roster from a goal-scoring standpoint.
WATCH: Gregg Berhalter addressed #CrewSC's trade with the @NERevolution this morning.https://t.co/EjHDdQOaFs
— The Crew (@ColumbusCrew) May 12, 2016
Gregg Berhalter Says Kei Kamara Trade Will Make Crew SC “Stronger as a Team”
But Columbus head coach and sporting director Gregg Berhalter is moving forward. And he thinks that in the long run, Crew SC’s team concept has been improved as a result of this move. He is also well aware that what transpired has been a tough thing to stomach from supporters.
“I can understand potential frustration from fans,” Berhalter told reporters Thursday. “But rest assured, we feel that this is going to make us stronger as a team.”
The Crew SC manager highlighted that team unity is an essential part of the club’s identity on the field. Though Kamara’s ability to score is undoubtedly prolific, he believes this group will still be able to find net with regularity in his absence.
“It’s the strength of the collective that makes our playing style special,” Berhalter noted. “Most of our goals, most of our good play comes from, you know, four, five, six players getting on the ball and being influential. It’s not about one guy. It’s never been about one guy. And I think this puts it all in perspective for us.”
If there’s one thing the club will most definitely miss, it’s Kamara’s quality winning headers. His 34 aerial duels won is best in MLS among forwards. Berhalter knows that’s going to be tough to replace.
“Kei is the best aerial threat in the league,” the Crew SC boss said. “So obviously we’re going to have to think about serving high crosses in. But we’ll still get crosses. They’ll be different in nature but we’ll still look to get the ball in the box.”
What’s interesting about this trade is that it sends Kamara to the team that knocked Crew SC out of the playoffs the year before he arrived. Though the two clubs aren’t traditional rivals, this development could ratchet up the intensity between them in the near-term.
“It’s going to make some great games with New England, that’s for sure,” Berhalter emphasized.
The Black and Gold play the Revs three times this season with the first meeting coming on July 9th. This is followed by another trip to Gillette Stadium for Crew SC on August 20th. Kamara’s potential return to Columbus will be on September 25th.
Locker room chemistry is an extremely important thing to any sports team. When there’s the potential for that to be disrupted, difficult decisions need to be made by the organization. Shipping Kamara off to another team certainly qualifies. But Berhalter is highly satisfied with the group that remains.
“This is a locker room that we really believe in,” he stated. “I mean these guys were hand picked and we feel it’s a strong group. And we’re going to be just fine.”
The first game of the post-Kamara era takes place on Saturday when the Colorado Rapids come to MAPFRE Stadium (7:30 PM, MLS Live, Altitude, TWCSC-Ohio, CW Columbus). The surprising Rapids currently own the best record in MLS.
