A Long Summer

Crew SC still have problems. Only reason Kei Kamara is gone is because he "broke the code" by speaking his mind. Had he said nothing, he'd still be in Columbus. Issues still with the team, regardless. Going to be a long summer. Enjoy!

Crew Issues are Many, Run Deep

The wheels have come off. There have been similar events over the last five years like last night's embarrassing failure, but not many. And they are not things you want to measure yourself against.

The intensity of which events happened last night drew out the teams investor / operator, Anthony Precourt (via Twitter):

I will say this. We need to huddle up as a fan base and as a team. We need to stick together. Crew SC stands for that. Easier said then done. I'm hearing of dissent amongst supporters. We need you to figure it out. And inside the club we will do the same. We still got this!

FIRST: The team part of this is in regards to apparent trouble between his two highest paid players in Federico Higuain and Kei Kamara. The latter going far enough to say that he doesn't need Higuain and that he actively worked against him since last year. Even preventing him from getting the league's Golden Boot award.

...it has been going on since last year? Why hasn't this been addressed?

It's easy to focus on what's right in front of us but let's not forget the release of promising CB signing Amro Tarek and the ongoing spat (or whatever) between Gregg Berhalter and Tony Tchani ever since he decided to play for his home country over the USA. Not to mention normal day to day issues like with what's going on with Waylon Francis.

SECOND: You may have noticed that the banners are gone in the supporters section. You may have also noted there is a new one on the opposite side (the fact it exists is the point, size of which matters not). There is a big problem "in the stands," but it has nothing to do with what's happening with the team on the pitch. Absolutely nothing.

Want to know what's going on? Listen to one of many the podcasts here in town. Columbus Crew SC created this problem. Self-inflicted wounds. The wrong hands are all over this situation. Until they pull them off, it'll keep going.

MANAGEMENT STYLE

It's passive. Restrained. Controlled. Insulated. I've written about the "new crew" leadership approach here a few times (one particular event had me worked up). The Crew run a closed shop and the media that follows it leans more brand journalist than anything else (save for Shawn Mitchell, whose talents are being wasted in this league).

Everyone has their own way of operation. The Crew way happens to lead to things like what we saw last night. A slow burn that has turned into a raging wildfire. It happens, of course. And it can be put out. But it won't be put out via social media gifs and the like. They will have to directly address issues.

Good can come from conflict, but from Tchani to players being released, to your DPs disliking each other, you've got put the passiveness aside. Get in somebody's face and fix it. Not now. But right now.

Mixed Messages on Kamara

Excellent reporting on the Kei Kamara contract situation by Shawn Mitchell in today's Columbus Dispatch as he was able to get quotes from both sides. Let's run down them real quick...

Gregg Berhalter:
- Kamara returned from Sierra Leone with "a slight illness that limited his training."
- "As far as I'm concerned he was full in with what he is able to to right now"
- "Our goal is to build him up to full strength. We're not going to rush him back."
- Won't "confirm or deny" negotiations.
Kei Kamara:
- Confirmed that he is in a contract dispute.
- "It's not something to hide"
- "We are talking contract. But we have not agreed to anything. When we do, then mentally I'll be good to go. 100%. But at the moment we're still talking."
- "under contract and that's why I'm here and not holding out. I've been paid to be here. But at the same time, I've done what I can do... for my team and I feel like I should be rewarded for it. So that's what I've asked the club to do."

It's a little bizarre that Berhalter is still talking this way. It's been speculated since the beginning of January that Kamara may be looking.

Berhalter, like any coach or anyone responsible for player contracts, would clearly rather this be not out in the world (and certainly not mentioned on a USMNT broadcast, like it was tonight). In the past, he's used excuses for players not happy or seeking a new deal. Same goes for Kamara but this time, it's got him reeling a bit.

Another rough going sign here is that Berhalter is still not being forthright about the situation when Kamara is. Mitchell mentioned that Kamara was offered an additional $140,000 for next season, but that seems like hush money seeing how the team is wanting this to not be about a contract.

Kamara is acting as his own agent, according to the article. That may end up hurting him ultimately, but he is in the right. He just had the best offensive season in Crew history and one of the best in MLS history. On top of that, he likely knows that Columbus is up the creek if he decides he is done.

Things sound like they are calm at the moment, in regards to communication. Since he's on a deal right now, MLS corporate is probably just shrugging their shoulders and ready to hit the dump button if he keeps holding out.

We shall see. Needs to be resolved quickly because these things jack up early seasons, especially with the missed training. Crew already are missing three to the USMNT, this just sorta backs things up even more.

BERHALTER BINDING!

Gregg Berhalter is bound and determined to find the right players for the Columbus Crew SC back line. In Gaston Sauro, the Crew technical director has plucked a gem out of Argentina via Calcio Catania in Italy.

Berhalter has poked and prodded his back four all season. From sitting Emanuel Pogatetz the last few games, to wishing Waylon Francis had an identical twin who happened to be right footed, three G's has sorely needed speed in the central back position.

Offensive dynamics, quick, simple possession play leading to many and varied attacks in and around the Crew's opponent's eighteen, has begun to show signs of reverting to thru-ball-city with only Finlay and Kamara baring their teeth. This thinning of diversity in attack can be blamed, partially, on the dysfunction within the central defensive two.

In soccer, any major issues, even at one position, affect the total eleven. On the field of play, eleven can appear greater in number or significantly less. The problems of space and pace in the Black and Gold clad side's last two have been leeching their way into the brightest star, dominate team play, at the other end of the field.

Back line rapidly floating into the abyss and taking the promise of greatness with it, Gregg Berhalter convinced Anthony Precourt to open his checkbook and put pen to bank balance. If Gaston Sauro's legs can outrun Pogatetz, Parkhurst and Wahl, the binding needed to tie together Crew SC's eleven may just lead to a restart of Major League Soccer's one-of-a-kind attack. The great unwashed masses in Middle Ohio may or may not deserve the wizard's vision; but, the conjurer is stirring the roiling cauldron at Hudson and I71.

Special K Heads in the game-winner, yet Crew SC still searching for killer instinct

Crew SC forward Kei Kamara get's game-winning goal in 3-1
victory over Chicago Fire.
Photo courtesy of Sameh Fahmi/Studio 79

Columbus, Ohio – Delayed by rain and lightning for their first nationally televised match of the season, the Crew SC beat the visiting Chicago Fire 3-1 in front of a less-than full house.

This is a Chicago team that the Crew SC had just beaten four days previous in the Second City. This is also a Chicago team that sits dead last in the MLS table with 18 points and has yet to win an away match. To say that head coach Frank Yallop is fighting for his job would be an understatement.

Despite scoring on a penalty kick (earliest in MLS history) for the early lead at the 2’ mark, Columbus conceded an early goal (9’), yet again. This is still a disturbing trend in the play of the team as they ascend to second place in the Eastern Conference.

As I sit here post-match listening to The Devil in California’s “Sell Me a Reason”, I’m reminded of the fact that the Crew SC still doesn’t have that killer instinct that championship teams display. Playing the last place team should be a walk in the park, unless your passing is not crisp and you give the ball away. This happened with alarming frequency Sunday evening in Mapfre Stadium for Columbus.

Where do I go? Where do I run?

If I double back again, I might come undone…

The Fire’s Jason Johnson saw his second yellow card for a dubious embellishment in the early stages of the second half, leading to a red card and his being sent off. This should have led to domination by the home team. And yet, there were many times that they had to get goalkeeper Steve Clark involved to clear the ball upfield.

In essence, they were chasing the game. This is not to say that they played like complete poo, because they did not. The victory and the three points garnered vault them into second place in the conference standings. And yet, there is still something missing that convinces people that Columbus is on the upswing.

“I think there were a number of challenges,” said head coach Gregg Berhalter past-match. “The first thing is that it was the third game in nine days, so there was obviously fatigue. Both teams had fatigue but I think that led, overall, to the quality of the match.”

“But the second thing is,” he continued, “they had to reorganize and they had to figure out a way to stop us, and we wanted to be the proactive team, and it’s always harder to build than it is to destroy, and I’ve said that a lot. So it was challenging, and then battling the weather as well with it being pretty warm, I think it led to a number of factors.”

The game-winning goal came at the 17’ mark as Special K, also known as forward Kei Kamara, leapt head and shoulders above the Chicago defenders in the box to head one home. He is the MLS leader with 14 goals scored of the Crew SC’s total of 31. And still, he ended up being a coach’s selection for the MLS All-Star Game on July 29.

“Definitely it wasn’t our best,” said Kamara of the match. “At some point I even forgot we were a man up. I felt like Chicago was controlling the game a lot. But, again, it’s really good for us to come out of there with three points and multiple goals. Being at home, always, we have to take three points from those games. Doing it twice against Chicago back-to-back is definitely good for us.”

Yes, the points are good. But do they portend good things for the team moving forward? They have a week of rest and training before hosting Toronto FC on Saturday, July 25. There is time to regroup and refocus their collective mindset ahead of that match.

Happiness comes in small does when you beat the worst team in the MLS. But, they earned six points over the last two matches, and that helps in keeping them above the playoff line.

The limits abound, there’s nowhere to be found. It’s where it begins, not where it ends, yeah…

Sell me a reason, indeed.

Kei Kamara lone Crew SC representative on MLS All-Star roster

It was announced today that forward Kei Kamara has been named to the 22-man Major League Soccer All-Star roster for the 2015 MLS All-Star Game against Barclay's Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur FC. The game will take place July 29 at Dick's Sporting Goods Park (Colorado Rapids) at 9 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.

Kamara leads the league with 13 goals. He's second in MLS with 4.5 shots per game, second in shots (89) and third in shots on goal (36). MLS All-Star head coach Pablo Mastroeni (Rapids head coach) selected Kamara for the gameday roster. Kamara is the 19th Crew SC player all-time to be named to the MLS All-Star roster.

While Kamara was named to the MLS All-Star roster in 2012 with Sporting Kansas City (inactive player), this is his first selection as an active player. The 30 year old Sierra Leonean has 166 starts in MLS, amassing 65 goals and 28 assists.

Noticeably absent from the roster is 24 year old Crew SC attacking midfielder Ethan Finlay. He's tied for first in MLS with Toronto's Sebastian Giovinco with 9 assists. It can be argued that Finlay, on merit alone, should have been named to the 2015 MLS All-Star roster.

The complete roster:

Goalkeepers (2): David Ousted (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)

Defenders (8): DaMarcus Beasley (Houston Dynamo), Tony Beltran (Real Salt Lake), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Laurent Ciman (Montreal Impact), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), Chad Marshall (Seattle Sounders FC), Drew Moor (Colorado Rapids), Chris Tierney (New England Revolution)

Midfielders (7): Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Fabian Castillo (FC Dallas), Benny Feilhaber (Sporting Kansas City), Steven Gerrard (LA Galaxy), Kaka (Orlando City SC), Frank Lampard (New York City FC), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)

Forwards (5): Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Sebastian Giovinco (Toronto FC), Kei Kamara (Columbus Crew SC), Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy), David Villa (New York City FC)

Tottenham Hotspur finished 5th in the Premier League table for the 2014/15 season, qualifying them for UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League play.

So, Like, Seriously, Berhalter, Totally Bitch'n!!

Mr. Precourt, you totally need to sign your coach to a ten year deal. Like, totally ten years. Gregg's, like, so extremely the best coach in the, ehmagawd, the whole United States.

Oh, Mm, Gee! Did you see, like, the bitch'n players he signed last year and the off season? Like, totally, Pogatetz! Seriously, Kamara!? Bitch'n, Saeid!! You must be totally kidding, Francis?!

And, like, style. Seriously, attack. Bitch'n possession and unleashing the hawtest Major League Franchise Players in Meram and Finlay.

So, like, Mr. Precourt, make Mr. Berhalter an offer he can't refuse. Wink, wink. And, totally, seriously, don't let Sunil Gulati anywhere near our bitch'n coach.   

 

11 Years of Kamara

Kamara was born and raised in Kenema, Sierra Leone's third largest city, and began his career playing for Kallon F.C. from 2001-2003. At age 16, Kamara and his family migrated to the United States through a refugee program.

Berhalter Spotted in the Heart of Gold Spaceship!

Photo: From the Magnificent Douglas Adams Book

Ever since the Columbus Crew Soccer Club's disastrous finish to the 2014 season, the Crew's coach, Gregg Berhalter, was thought to be lounging somewhere in the offices of Crew Stadium sipping on leftover draft beer. Rumors were spreading in regards to Coach Berhalter's utter despondency over losing to the New England Revolution in the Eastern Conference Finals. There were even whispers linking the sporting director to Frankie Hejduk's barber.

The Helltown Beer Blog can confirm that none of the above is true (well, maybe the barber thing has some validity, but don't expect Gregg Berhalter to equal Frankie Hejduk's length or style by first kick 2015). The real scoop is Coach Berhalter and Josh Wolff have been using the Infinite Improbability Drive, which powers the Heart of Gold spaceship, to travel unnoticed to far-flung places such as Sweden and Egypt. Armed with nothing more than towels, smiles and exceedingly cheery dispositions, the two Crew coaches have signed Mohammed Saeid and hope to ink Omar Gaber.

These two recent developments, following on the heels of Kei Kamara's re-joining the Crew, help solidify Gregg Berhalter as one of the top minds in Major League Soccer. The Columbus Crew SC, with new owner, brand and marketing in hand, want to break attendance records, win championships and establish the Black and Gold as a sophisticated worldwide entity. Finding where the true soccer nuts in Columbus hibernate, barely noticing the old hardhat wearing Crew, was critical.

For almost twenty years the Columbus Crew front office milked the tried and true suburbanite soccer families of Central Ohio. The ebb and flow seen on the attendance front was easily predicted. 

Turning the thousands of Crew averse sleepy soccer nuts into Black and Gold SC fanatics, while continuing to reach out to the core fan base, apparently, required the Herculean efforts of Anthony Precourt, Gregg Berhalter and a copy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to International Soccer (not to mention The Heart of Gold). These latest moves, by one of Major League Soccer's best young managerial minds, are quite clever and may pay super-sized dividends long into the future.

Kei Kamara, Mohammed Saeid and Omar Gaber are all quality soccer players. Kamara is an MLS proven commodity, while Saeid and Gaber are young internationals who complement Gregg Berhalter's rapidly developing Crew squad. The icing on top is the fact that these signings have the power to tap into the large and soccer passionate international community in Columbus.

Kamara, Saeid and Gaber, as well as Justin Meram, now playing for the Iraq National Team, give the Columbus Crew a unique international flavor. Kamara grew up in Sierra Leone, having moved to the United States at the age of sixteen. Saeid, born in Sweden and a veteran at the age of 24, brings European pedigree to Columbus. Gaber, Egyptian and having national team level experience, will be the first Egyptian to play in Major League Soccer...if he signs. Meram, born and raised in the U.S., is the unique case of an American citizen playing for a Middle Eastern country.

Columbus boasts a large Somali population. This group of recent immigrants is quite crazy for the soccer. Through Ohio State University, Columbus can also boast a growing and varied international population. Finally, there are a substantial number of people living in Columbus who count Mexico as their country of origin. Maybe coach Berhalter should look to a our neighbors to the south for the Crew's next addition? 

Whether they be home grown, European, African, Middle Eastern, or Mexican, Gregg Berhalter finding and signing young talented players from a diversity of locales can only help win games, and perhaps just as important, bring thousands more Columbus, Ohio citizens out to see the ever more sophisticated, worldwide entity known as The Columbus Crew Soccer Club.

Kei Kamara, or Trade?

So, this yellow shirted gentleman is Kei Kamara. He is 30 years old. He was born and raised in Sierra Leone. He moved to the states when he was 16.

Mr. Kamara is a forward. He has played a number of years in Major League Soccer. He has played for Columbus (appearing in 36 games), San Jose (12 games), Houston (32 games) and Kansas City. Kansas City is the club for which Kamara played the longest period of time, 5 years.

Recently, Kei Kamara has been knocking the ball around England, first with Norwich City for 11 games, and then with Middlesbrough for 25 games. He and Middlesbrough have parted ways. With the exception of Kansas City, it seems Kei Kamara has had a difficult time staying in one place for long.

The Columbus Crew hold the first spot in Major League Soccer's allocation order. If the Crew want Kamara, and Kamara wants to play in Columbus, he is the Black and Gold's to have. But does Kei Kamara fit into what Gregg Berhalter has been building the last nine months? Would Gregg Berhalter and the Columbus Crew be better off trading the first allocation spot to another Major League Soccer team for a different sort of forward?

Rumor has it that Kamara wants to be in Kansas City or Vancouver. Rumors are often flights of fancy born on the wings of angels made out of milk chocolate and caramel. But...let's suppose the rumors are a tad bit more than sweet dreams floating heavenward.

Vancouver and Sporting KC have some interesting forwards on their rosters. Forwards that, on the surface at least, would seem to make a much more comfortable fit with the Crew's existing roster and style of play.

Take for example:

 

These young men are, in order from top to bottom: Soony Saad, 22-year-old currently playing for Kansas City; CJ Sapong, 25-year-old currently playing for Kansas City; and Darren Mattocks, 24-year-old currently playing for Vancouver.

All three of these footballers are dynamic young strikers. In Saad's case you have a player who left college, University of Michigan, at the age of 19, having scored a freshman record nineteen goals. Soony also lit up his high school senior season with 76 goals.

CJ Sapong played four years at James Madison University. His 20 goals in 103 appearances for Kansas City hint at his fearless attitude inside the opposing teams penalty area.

Darren Mattocks played at Akron University for two years. He helped lead the Zips to a national title his freshmen year. Mattocks scored 39 goals in just 47 appearances for Akron.

Each of these players brings something unique to the field. Saad is a clever striker, who frustrates defenders with quick off-the-ball movement. Sapong is a handful for any Major League Soccer defender. He is strong and disruptive. Mattocks is, perhaps, the finest athlete in MLS. All three possess above average skill on the ball and the ability to read the game well.

All three would be a better fit with Greg Berhalter's Columbus Crew than would Kei Kamara. They are young and would find many contemporaries within the Crew's roster. They each bring something to the forward position which the Crew do not currently get from their stable of strikers. With the exception of CJ Sapong, they have another year or two to develop who they are as players.

If the Black and Gold can work out a deal for one of these young players, and not lose too much of their allocation money in the process, Gregg Berhalter and his staff will still have enough wiggle room going into next season to sign two players of Frederico Higuain's stature.

Allocation money, cap room and an owner willing to add another moderately priced Designated Player in January or February would make the Columbus Crew a force in Major League Soccer.
Snatching-up one of the three young forwards above would be a coup for Gregg Berhalter as the 2014 season rushes to a close. If a trade is possible, Mr. Berhalter should make it...NOW! If the trade deadline has passed, then the Crew should make the same deal the day the season ends or as soon as the impenetrable rules of MLS allow.

*Update: The trade deadline is September 15th.

Edit: In case I wasn't clear, along with the first allocation spot the Crew would have to include some of their allocation money in order to get any of the three young players above.