OBETZ, Ohio – The Columbus Crew have already confirmed that the club has beaten the Sept. 15 MLS roster freeze deadline with the addition of Austrian defender Emanuel Pogatetz.

But at training Monday, Gregg Berhalter hinted that another deal could be in the works as well.

“We’re active, and we’re looking for the right guy,” the Crew head coach and sporting director said. “We have guys identified.”

The Crew still have the top spot in the allocation order. And with rumors of former Sporting Kansas City forward Kei Kamara returning to the league, where he would be subject to that process, Berhalter admitted that the club is thinking of bringing in the former Middlesbrough man.

“We’ve looked into it,” Berhalter said. “He’s an interesting player.”

It seems that Berhalter and the Crew have done their Kamara research.

“We see him as a guy that can play number nine, he can play on the wing, he can score,” Berhalter said. “If you look at his goals in the last three years in MLS, it’s pretty good. There are not many guys who have more goals than him. So we like him. We think he’s a good player.”

Kamara wouldn’t be able to play for an MLS club this season because he was under contract with Middlesbrough after the MLS transfer window closed on Aug. 6, but Berhalter said using the allocation spot to acquire Kamara for the future would still be worth it.

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“What’s the alternative?” he said. “The alternative is maybe moving that spot or other guys. So [bringing in Kamara] is one alternative that we think is a good option.”

Berhalter said that other clubs have contacted the Crew about potentially moving into that spot, but he once again reiterated that any deal in MLS involving acquiring a player has plenty of nuance.

“These deals don’t happen easily, and you’ve got to put a lot of effort and work into them to get them done,” he said. “But we’re working. And I think the most important thing is bringing in the right individual.”