On Aug. 9, 2017, Minnesota United sent a combined $425,000 of allocation money to the Columbus Crew in exchange for Ethan Finlay. In the ever-shifting landscape of MLS trades, it seemed a sizable but realistic return for a starting winger who was two years removed from an MLS Best XI nod. The Crew were up against a major off-field distraction — whether or not they’d be playing in Austin come 2019 — and a continued movement to lower costs on the pitch. Finlay followed Kei Kamara out of MAPFRE Stadium and was soon followed by Justin Meram and Ola Kamara this winter. His exit made sense.



Still, it made far more sense for the Loons. Up until that point, the only acquisitions of note in Minnesota’s summer transfer window were adding Michael Boxall and Sam Nicholson. It still left the team without a bona-fide starting right winger, especially once Kevin Molino had cemented a place as the team’s No. 10. The wide role was filled by a committee of Johan...