Kei Kamara doesn't agree 'at all' with club-issued suspension
Columbus Crew star Kei Kamara says he doesn't agree with head coach Gregg Berhalter's decision to issue an in-house one game suspension following a tirade of comments directed towards teammate Federico Higuain.
Kamara was highly critical of the Argentine midfielder for not allowing him to take a penalty that would have secured his first hat trick with the club, and the in-fighting lead to a late collapse and an eventual 4-4 draw by a come-from-behind Montreal Impact side.
Kamara said of Higuain: "I haven’t really had to depend on Pipa at all. How long have I been here? How many goals have I scored? How many have come from his assists? One, maybe two. I don’t depend on him. I depend on Ethan (Finlay), I depend on my outside backs to pass me balls."
The club then issued a one-game suspension and is reportedly shopping the Sierra Leone striker around to other teams.
And, while Kamara took to Twitter to dispel the notion he is on the way out, he didn't hold back when asked about his upcoming suspension:
"He (Berhalter) told me that this morning, and obviously I didn't agree to it all," Kamara said, according to ESPN FC. "I won't agree to it. But he's the boss, and if he says, 'We don't need you for the weekend. You're going to have to sit out for the weekend,' there's nothing I can do about that.
"If I'm here for this club, I want to play for this club, I'm going to show my heart and leave everything out there. That's what I've been doing."
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Berhalter admitted to reporters at training Tuesday that the club is indeed looking at roster options, saying that while he "won't get into specifics" there have been teams that have reached out to the Crew for Kamara's services.
He also stuck by his decision to suspend Kamara for an upcoming fixture against the Colorado Rapids at MAPFRE Stadium.
"The action of Kei, speaking out against a teammate, is unacceptable," Berhalter said, according to ESPN FC. "We have zero tolerance for that. Therefore, he won't be playing in the game Saturday - coach's decision.
"And then we try to move forward in the right way. We're a team that keeps things together. We keep things between ourselves, and that's why that decision was made."
Any attempts to make amends with Higuain were quelled, too.
"My Chipotle card only covers one," Kamara said, when asked if he would take Higuain out to lunch to hash things out. "It says, 'One meal a day.' I can't afford another one."