COLUMBUS, Ohio – Since he was handed the reins to the Columbus Crew SC attack in May, Ola Kamara has shrugged off comparisons to former teammate Kei Kamara. Ola’s been resistant to compare himself to last year’s MVP finalist since Kei departed, and said he didn’t feel any extra pressure when Kei returned to Columbus Sunday for the first time since his high-profile trade to the New England Revolution in May.
Ola maintained that he was mainly focused on a win, but after scoring both goals in Columbus’s season-preserving 2-0 victory, he admitted there was a little extra on the line in Kamara vs. Kamara.
“For me, the focus was the game and three points,” Ola said after the win. “But of course I knew it was a match-up between the Kamaras and I wanted to be the winner.”
Embracing his first taste of an MLS playoff race, Ola says he enjoys the spotlight and was simply “out there trying to score goals.”
“It’s cool, and I really want to play in the playoffs because I haven’t before,” he said. “But I’ve played games like this before where it’s win-or-go-home. Those are the best games.”
Columbus head coach Gregg Berhalter looked further than Ola’s brace, praising the rest of his game that won’t appear in a box score.
“He was big, not only getting the two goals but in holding the ball up,” Berhalter said. “We played a number of balls into him and he was extremely physical, brought other guys into the game…and I think he had one of his better performances since he’s been here.”
If Columbus – still in ninth place in the Eastern Conference – make a historic playoff push to close out their season, Ola bellowing at his teammates in jubilation after his first goal Sunday will surely become a lasting image.
He said there wasn’t any particular emotion in the moment, but knew how important the strike was.
“In my preparation for the game I was thinking in my mind that the first goal can be very crucial for this game and it’s going to be a tight game,” he said. “Both teams needed that win; it’s a six-point game. So the first goal was very important. It was a good feeling to give my team that lead.”
Berhalter and the entire Crew SC squad have maintained their belief of that playoff race comeback for the entire summer. And with just five matches to play, the team still believes they can hurdle three other teams to stay alive.
“It’s do-or-die right now,” Berhalter said. “We’ve talked about [it]; we’re going to keep fighting until we’re either mathematically out of it or mathematically in it. And we’re not going to hold back and we’re going to keep going.”
