Arace: Notes in the background of the curious case of Columbus Crew's Kevin Molino
Kevin Molino put the cross into the box that led to the game-winning goal in the Crew’s 3-2 victory in Cincinnati, in extra time, in last year’s MLS Eastern Conference final. He was on the field at the end of the MLS Cup championship game as the Crew secured a 2-1 victory over visiting LAFC. Less than a week later, it was announced that the Crew had picked up the option on Molino’s contract for 2024.
Then they dropped it.
Back in December, Crew president/general manager Tim Bezbatchenko said, “The way this league is evolved, (it's important) to have a player who has a game-changing ability come on ... and come in different roles. Kevin's an ultimate pro, he's a great person. Where the roster is now, we'll see where it is at the beginning of the year, let's put it that way.”
There, in that last sentence, was a foreshadowing of possible change in the status of Molino, 33.
As the players went through the paces in the Florida portion of their training camp, astute fans who were monitoring social media noticed that Molino seemed to be missing. Then, when CONCACAF released the official rosters for the 2024 Champions Cup, Molino’s name was conspicuously absent from the Crew’s list.
The Crew were asked about these things and a spokesperson said, essentially, that Molino’s absence was excused by the team (no further explanation was offered) and that the team’s Champions Cup roster remained subject to modification. As it turned out, the Crew and Molino were negotiating an agreement to terminate his contract. It is not clear how much Molino will be paid of his $750,000 salary, but that chunk is now off the Crew’s books.
“The league forces us to make decisions the day after MLS Cup," Bezbatchenko said. “It’s in the CBA. I’m calling or traveling across town to tell players whether they have a job. It’s cruel. At that time, we didn’t have clarity on Molino. Obviously, we decided to bring him back. Now, we’re looking at the salary cap.
“Every year there’s a 5% increase in the cap and players get a 15% increase. When it comes to roster compliance, tough decisions had to be made. Julian (Gressel) was one. Then there are the players that deserved a bump – (Sean) Zawadzki was one, and there were a few more. Compliance is a (bear).”
Crew coach Wilfried Nancy earlier this week expressed his appreciation for Molino as a man, and admiration for Molino as an athlete who overcame multiple major knee injuries.
Nancy also shed some light on formation of the roster when he was asked whether he had any idea of what his initial starting 11 might look like. (Remember, the entire starting 11 that won the MLS Cup title on Dec. 9 returns intact.)
“The way I see the game, it is not about 11 players, it is about core players,” Nancy said. “We have 21 players signed and I’m happy with that. Last year in eight weeks we had eight games. This year in eight weeks we can have 15 games. I cannot play with the same 11. The idea is to get the maximum (number of) players involved to be able to compete in every competition.”
Nancy went on to describe his philosophy of roster building and, per usual, his thinking was deep. More on that in an upcoming column.
Given that Molino’s subtraction gave the Crew some salary-cap relief, and despite what Nancy says about his contentment with the roster, one might be led to believe that the Crew is in the transfer market.
The primary transfer window opened Jan. 31 and it will close April 23.
“We’re exploring,” Bezbatchenko said. “Nothing is imminent. We’ve got some young players in camp and we’ll see how they’re going to do before we do anything else.”
To that end, Nancy indicated that he has been impressed with midfielder Taha Habroune, a homegrown player who signed a first-team contract last month. Habroune celebrated his 18th birthday earlier this week.
“Big personality,” Nancy said. “For me, to succeed and be consistent, this is a quality that you should have. And Taha has that. He was able to handle the pressure. Good for him. And other (young guys), maybe they need a little more time. I’m happy with what I’ve seen so far.”
Lastly, there were Cucho Hernandez rumors. Or rumor: A recent report out of Spain said a first-division La Liga club had made a ptich for the Crew’s star striker.
“There’s nothing to them, nothing real,” Bezbatchenko said. “Every six to eight weeks there are some inquiries by some clubs – but no offers. I don’t take anything seriously without an offer.”
Stay tuned.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Arace: Columbus Crew, coach Wilfried Nancy readying for busy spring
