Columbus Crew SC forward Kei Kamara leads Major League Soccer with 12 goals; has scored more than half of the Black & Gold’s 23 tallies; has recorded four braces this year; and halfway through the season, has already bested his previous MLS goal-scoring record.
In short, this is the best Kei Kamara the League has seen. What else is there left to say about him?
If you’re Justin Meram, you try playful sarcasm.
“We are pretty disappointed in him right now because he’s always getting two and not three,” the midfielder joked after Kamara's brilliant performance vs. the New England Revolution. “I think he needs to step it up a little bit, two goals is just unacceptable now.”
All kidding aside, there’s a simple rule this season: when Kamara scores, Crew SC doesn’t lose. The Black & Gold are 5-0-3 in the eight matches where Kamara's found the back of the net.
Sixteen matches since his return to Columbus, it’s hard to imagine the Black & Gold without their star striker.
“He just finds himself in great spots,” midfielder Ethan Finlay said. “The ball and him, it’s like a magnet, they are finding each other.”
That magnetic energy was on display once again on Wednesday night when Kamara struck twice to lift Crew SC over the New England Revolution at MAPFRE Stadium.
The striker showed off his athleticism with his first goal when he put away a rebound off the crossbar with a lunging header to equalize just four minutes in. He added the game winner in the 50th, smashing a Finlay cross home from close range.
“I thought some of the movements were exceptional,” Sporting Director and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter said about Kamara following the 2-1 victory. “We want him stretching the opponent’s backline, we want him being physical, being mobile, and he certainly was tonight.”
In his post-match comments, Berhalter stressed Kamara’s impact on the entire team.
“He’s the leading scorer in the League and I think that it’s a testament to him,” he said, “but it’s also a testament to the group that they know where to find him, they know how to give him balls and they keep looking for him.”
Kamara echoes his coach's sentiments, crediting his teammates for his current goal-scoring run.
“I have really good teammates that have been finding me and making that easy for me,” he said. “Ethan, for example, the League has to recognize that he’s one of the best passers around and he can find people and he’s found that strength that he can make good passes.
“It’s not all about scoring goals all the time,” he said, “it’s about making the good passes, finding somebody who’s open and it’s great. I’m just happy to be at the end of it.”
Kamara will get another chance to form heart-shaped hands when Crew SC visits Real Salt Lake on Saturday. Should the striker score yet another brace in Utah, he would be on pace to break the all-time MLS record of 27 goals in a season.
Don’t miss the action when Kamara and company take on RSL. Tune in to Time Warner Cable SportsChannel, CD102.5 FM or La Mega 103.1 FM at 10 p.m. ET.
