The Columbus Crew turned some heads when they rallied as underdogs at the end of last season to sneak in to the playoffs. They ended up as the third seed in the Eastern Conference before getting crushed by the New England Revolution in the playoffs. Even so, the resolve they showed in getting to that point made the season a resounding success.
The focus this past offseason remained on reloading with a few new players that could help Columbus compete with the best from MLS in postseason play. Although they lost their preseason opener, dropping a 3-1 result to FC Dallas in the ATX Pro Challege, the Crew made a huge splash this offseason with a number of important signings and might be ready to vie for an MLS Cup in 2015.
Beginning At The Back End
Perhaps one of the most important moves of the offseason came when Columbus signed Chris Klute to help bolster their back line. The veteran defender was acquired in a draft-day deal with the Colorado Rapids that also involved passing on Axel Sjoberg to select Jamaican national team member Sergio Campbell. Klute is exactly what the Crew needed on the back end as he brings a wealth of experience and talent, and is expected to slide in immediately as the team’s starting fullback.
Although, he does have the versatility to play on the right or left side if need be. The additions of Klute, Campbell, and Hernan Grana to an already solid defense core led by Michael Parkhurst should give Columbus one of the strongest and deepest back lines in the Eastern Conference this season. The 42 goals Crew allowed last year was the sixth-fewest in all of MLS and that number should go down again for the 2015 season after making substantial improvements.
As for the offense, they didn’t need to do too much with as they scored a healthy 52 goals last season. That total was good for second-best in the Eastern Conference.
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Addition Without Subtraction
Columbus also did an excellent job of adding to the roster without subtracting any major pieces from the core of their team as Agustin Viana, Bernardo Anor, and Jairo Arrieta were the three most notable departures. In addition to the acquisitions they made on defense, the Crew also looked abroad when they signed midfielders Mohammed Saeid and Kristinn Steindorsson to improve their depth. Meanwhile, forward Kei Kamara returns as a free agent after he spent the past year with Middlesbrough. Kamara will be an invaluable piece up front as his level of finish will be sorely needed this season. The fact that Columbus was able to add to a playoff caliber roster without losing any substantial pieces means this offseason has to be considered a successful one.
Our Standard
There was an interesting phenomena that played out in Columbus since the end of last season. A new catchphrase was coined by the team’s high-performance trainer Steve Tashjian, who was hired last September, which started with the basic goal to make sure the team accepted responsibility and did not rest on their laurels in the offseason. But slogan has spread like wildfire across all of the team channels from the locker room, into the front office and onto social media.
While it’s caught on virally, with virtually all CCSC tweets having the hashtag #OurStandard, team executives have come out and said that it’s actually going to be kept and incorporated into the team’s rebrand. There are new expectations, new jerseys and now a new franchise identity that all players must meet.
Outlook
One of the surprise teams from 2014 is ready to take another step forward as the Crew has solidified its place among the Eastern Conference playoff contenders following another strong offseason. There has been plenty of optimism surrounding the team early on in camp and they are expected to look even better once the live bullets start to fly – and not just because of their new uniforms.
Found some Gold today at Crew Stadium #crewsc pic.twitter.com/nwDOXHNF6R
— Andy Loughnane (@LockCrewSC) February 10, 2015
The veteran additions made to the back line in particular will be important as a strong back line got even better on paper and it will be interesting to see if Columbus did enough this offseason to get back to the postseason and maybe even further this time around.
