It’s early days for new Columbus Crew president Tim Bezbatchenko, and the former Toronto FC general manager hasn’t quite nailed down the language of shifting allegiances.

The 37-year-old, who surprised Major League Soccer when he left TFC after more than five years to join his hometown Crew, took a walk down memory lane amid the “still fresh” emotions of leaving a city that grew to feel like home. And Bezbatchenko — his words, in a telephone interview, tinged with the excitement of past successes in Toronto — sounded like he’d never left.

“We should have won it in a lot of ways,” he said of the 2016 MLS Cup final against the Seattle Sounders, which the Reds lost on penalties at BMO Field. “There should be two stars above our crest, but that’s the way things roll in sports, and you have to earn it and you have to finish the business.”

Some of Bezbatchenko’s favourite TFC memories occurred before they avenged that defeat by beating the Sounders for the MLS crown in 2017:

In October 2015, the club clinched its first playoff berth with a win over the New York Red Bulls — thanks in part to a masterful goal by striker Sebastian Giovinco, who had flown back from international duty with Italy earlier that day. “He scores that goal against a good team. That was incredible, and I think it was powerful for the whole club and for the fans,” Bezbatchenko said.

The Eastern Conference final against the Montreal Impact in November 2016 was an epic two-leg affair that began with badly painted lines and a 3-2 loss in front of 65,000 fans at Olympic Stadium. It ended in rain-soaked hysteria at BMO Field, when TFC erased that deficit and won 7-5 on aggregate in extra time. “Being in the press box and actually feeling the whole room shake and the stadium, it was delirious,” he said. “I’ve followed sports — I’m a fan of all sports — but I’ve never experienced something like that as a fan, let alone a general manager before.”

The MLS Cup in 2017 — after capturing the Canadian Championship and Supporters’ Shield — was celebrated by throngs of supporters along a parade route from the then-Air Canada Centre to city hall. The GM joked that his goodbye text to Jozy Altidore should have referenced the star striker’s champagne-altered speech that day, in which he told fans they “had The Six on a wave.”

“I never expected the streets to be filled … that was incredible,” Bezbatchenko said. “People love their sports in Toronto and TFC, for that moment in time, not only was relevant but was No. 1 in the city.”

Bezbatchenko, who joined the club in 2013 after three years with the league’s front office, masterminded that rise to relevance, from laughingstock to powerhouse.

“We would not be in this business if we weren’t competitors, and we didn’t feel like we wanted to do something great and leave a legacy,” he said.

“That’s what (captain) Michael Bradley talks about in the locker room, and that’s what (coach Greg Vanney) talked about with his staff. What indelible mark can you leave that can be a legacy? Now, you don’t want to come off as sounding egotistical … but that’s why you’re in sports. That’s why we’re in the business, to do different things and to leave a mark, and I think we’re were able to do that.”

Bezbatchenko added that he wasn’t sure he would be in Columbus today without those achievements. He wasn’t looking for a change of scenery when the Crew’s new ownership sought permission to speak with him, before Christmas. Their vision for the club, the opportunity to run the business side as well as soccer options, plus proximity to family and the Reds coming up on a period of transition swayed him to make what he called a bittersweet move.

He regretted not having time to sit down with the Reds’ supporters groups before his departure — to thank them.

“You can win titles, but unless you look around and appreciate and love the people that are around you in the room and on the pitch, it really doesn’t matter. I know it’s getting a little sappy here, but for me that is the pinnacle of success,” he said.

Two days before Christmas, as he mulled his options, his passport, permanent residence card and Nexus pass were stolen from his car in Columbus. Wife Annie joked that it might be an omen.

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Bezbatchenko’s successor, Ali Curtis, is a friend and takes over at a significant time in Toronto FC history with Bradley, Giovinco and Altidore — the cornerstones brought in by the outgoing GM — all in need of new contracts after this year.

“You live for those moments,” Bezbatchenko said of trying to build a champion. “This is our pitch — constructing a roster that can win. Now, in Columbus, I’m looking forward to the same thing.”

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