Kei Kamara from Columbus to New England Could Change the Balance in the MLS East
This is one of the last full weekends before international camps begin thinning MLS rosters for the summer.
Apparently, the cause of the Columbus Crew’s woes was their all-everything goal scorer. Kei Kamara was shipped to the New England Revolution this past week for what amounted to the MLS equivalent of “a vault and a Brinks truck.” The towering striker is now on his fifth MLS team and, if rumors are to be believed, has developed a reputation as one of the more difficult teammates in American soccer.
On the one hand, that’s hard to believe. Kamara’s public persona is that of a goofball who also happens to be one of the league’s premier aerial threats. On the other hand, five MLS teams in 11 years, plus a stint in England. He may have been the runner-up for both the Golden Boot and MLS MVP last season, but here’s hoping he doesn’t own too much furniture.
It’s an especially strange move given the way both teams are constructed. The Columbus Crew no longer has anyone who can dominate in the air the way Kamara could — and very few players in MLS can. His immediate replacements, Ola Kamara (no relation) and Conor Casey, offer different skill sets. Ola Kamara relies more on movement and pace, while Casey brings size and hold-up play, but is at a very different stage of his career. Head coach Gregg Berhalter’s 2015 strategy of creating wide angles and serving balls into the box was tailor-made for Kei Kamara. That approach will need to evolve. What does Berhalter think will work instead? We’re about to find out.
As for the New England Revolution, they already have a young target-style forward in Juan Agudelo. Not long ago, Agudelo was viewed as the future of American goal scoring. He has since developed into more of a mobile, versatile forward in the mold of C.J. Sapong, which still holds plenty of value at age 23. Perhaps Agudelo will benefit from learning alongside a proven finisher for a few months. Or perhaps the locker room dynamics will become more complicated. Either way, it’s difficult to see how the minutes will be distributed among Agudelo, Charlie Davies, and Teal Bunbury. And Kamara’s arrival does little to address what has been one of the league’s more vulnerable defenses in Foxborough.
Both the Columbus Crew and the New England Revolution are scrapping for lower playoff seeds in a tightly packed Eastern Conference. From a short-term, postseason-aspirations perspective, this looks like a coup for New England. But the Revolution also sent a significant allocation of money Columbus’s way. If the Crew can leverage those resources — whether on a Designated Player or reinforcements elsewhere — the long-term picture could look very different. Does anyone know if Nicklas Bendtner is an Urban Meyer fan?
If you believe the rumors, Columbus’s next potential headline-grabber would have to compete with none other than Zlatan Ibrahimović. The Swedish superstar has been linked with the LA Galaxy, because of course he has. The Galaxy doesn’t necessarily need another imposing goal scorer leading the line, but it’s not as if Gyasi Zardes would keep Ibrahimović off the field if he did arrive. It’s a bizarre situation best handled with cautious skepticism until something concrete materializes. Especially if you’re a San Jose Earthquakes supporter wondering how Marvell Wynne is supposed to deal with a striker capable of the outrageous.
Ideally, any major deals would wait until after this weekend’s slate of matches. With both the Columbus Crew and the New England Revolution fighting — desperately, in Columbus’s case — for playoff positioning, each has an opportunity to gain ground. Western Conference leader Colorado Rapids will be on the road and coming off a midweek 1–0 win over Sporting Kansas City, so if the retooled Crew want to make a statement, Saturday presents an opportunity in front of their home crowd. The Revolution, meanwhile, faces a Chicago Fire side on short rest — a matchup they will feel they should handle.
On Sunday, New York City FC takes the national stage (SiriusXM FC) in an attempt to put another dent in the Portland Timbers. NYCFC’s creative lineups have begun to look less visionary and more desperate as points continue to slip away. The club is still searching for a long-term identity — though Portland is navigating questions of its own. It has the makings of a high-scoring, chaotic affair.
This is one of the last full weekends before international camps begin thinning MLS rosters for the summer. The strangest part of the Kei Kamara-to-New England trade is how dramatically it shifts the balance in an already tight league table. One shoe has dropped with the high-scoring malcontent moving on. The other? We’re still waiting to see where it lands.
