Columbus, OH (January 29, 2018) — Justin Meram has traded away Black and Gold for Royal Purple.
It was announced early Thursday afternoon that Columbus Crew SC had traded away Meram to Orlando City SC in exchange for $750,000 in Targeted Allocation Money (TAM) and $300k in General Allocation Money (GAM).
Columbus Crew SC Trades Justin Meram to Orlando City SC
Orlando nailed their second biggest signing in this off-season. The first came from acquiring Sacha Kljestan from the New York Red Bulls in exchange for Tommy Redding, Carlos Rivas, and $150,000 in TAM.
Meram spent most of his playing time out wide on the left wing in Gregg Berhalter’s 4-2-3-1 formation. But has also established himself as a central playmaker.
The Iraqi international spent seven seasons in Columbus. The previous two saw Meram flourish, scoring five goals and tallying up 13 assists in 2016, and almost reciprocating the exact stats in 2017 (13 goals, seven assists).
When all is said and done, Meram leaves Columbus with 40 goals and 35 assists in 200 appearances including regular season and playoffs.
Columbus Making Moves
For Crew SC, this is the second time in less than two weeks that they have traded away a major piece of the attack.
Last week, the club traded away striker Ola Kamara to the Los Angeles Galaxy in exchange for Gyasi Zardes and $400,000 in allocation money. However, the total could rise to $500k if Kamara scores 12 goals this season. If Zardes hits a certain accomplishment, the Galaxy could receive some extra spending money.
Meram had expressed his wish to be traded away, and Berhalter did just that.
It also goes to note that earlier in the week, Berhalter had mentioned that there could be a “signing or two coming.”
After acquiring Milton Valenzuela on loan at left back, it is uncertain what the Jersey native has up his sleeve for what could be Columbus’ last season in the Buckeye state.
