If there was an iconic moment from Columbus Crew SC's first-leg victory over the New York Red Bulls in the Eastern Conference Championship on Sunday, it might have been the sight of Cedrick Mabwati leaving Dax McCarty sprawled on his backside on the edge of the New York box as the Crew player waltzed through the Red Bulls' defense to set up the second -- and potentially killer -- goal in a 2-0 win.
It said everything about the relative fortunes of the two teams' midfields on the day. New York's vaunted trio of McCarty, Sacha Kljestan and Felipe Martins were all "off" in key areas of their game, while the Crew midfield all showed up with vital contributions.
Mabwati -- who along with teammate Harrison Afful represents one of the best bits of underappreciated transfer business of the summer -- showed up to change the complexion of this tie, just as he had against Montreal. And McCarty, so often the rock for New York this year, was the fall guy.
Yet looking at the game from a wider angle, this wasn't so much a study in contrasts as an intriguing battle among equals. And McCarty himself could tell you a thing or two about being underappreciated. One of the best defensive midfielders in the league this year has barely had a chance at international level under Jurgen Klinsmann -- being the only field player not to come off the bench during the January team camp scarcely counts.
And in recounting his own journey of survival through various fast-changing Red Bulls regimes, McCarty might find a sympathetic listener in Tony Tchani -- one of the Crew midfielders who gave him such a torrid time on Sunday.
In April 2011, with the Red Bulls searching for offensive inspiration, Tchani was a makeweight in the deal that brought Dwayne De Rosario from Toronto to New York. Meanwhile, McCarty was trying to find a home to settle in. Left unprotected by Dallas after helping them to the 2010 MLS Cup final, he'd been grabbed by Portland in the 2011 expansion draft, traded to D.C. United and, at the time of the De Rosario trade, was settling in as United's captain, presumably with a future as coach Ben Olsen's avatar on the field.
Less than three months later, McCarty was on the move again. The De Rosario trade hadn't worked out, and just as importantly, New York now had problems at the other end of the field as they were leaking goals and needed cap space to address goalkeeper matters. In late June 2011, McCarty duly moved to New York to try to magically create some midfield efficiency alongside Rafa Marquez, while De Rosario headed to D.C.
When the dust settled, New York fans were left looking at the series of trades and pointing out that their team had essentially traded three players, including De Rosario and a promising midfielder in Tchani, for the dubious luxury of a holding midfielder who hadn't yet proved his worth in McCarty.
Fast-forward four years and nobody in MLS is doubting McCarty's worth, though it might be intriguing to revisit the math of that original sequence of trades and look at the growth of Tchani in the interim. The young Cameroonian was called up during the last international break but had to decline because of injury. He is still eligible for the U.S., and there could be some temptation for Klinsmann to lock him in sooner rather than later if he continues to develop into the type of enforcer he is steadily growing into at Columbus.
Were that to happen, it's just possible that there could someday be a scenario in which Tchani ends up shoving McCarty further down the order, which might register as insult to injury, should Columbus complete the job at Red Bull Arena on Sunday.
Tchani's still a more limited player than McCarty, but in the right context, he can thrive. As a spoiler in the first leg, the combination of his tackling and Wil Trapp's ability to step up and stop the Red Bulls' distribution when the visitors won the ball, were unspectacular but very significant parts of the Crew's team performance and ability to stop New York from getting into top gear.
The attacking midfielders of Federico Higuain, Justin Meram and Ethan Finlay, and of course the multifaceted weapon that is Kei Kamara, rightly get a lot of the attention, and one of them could end up grabbing a vital away goal that secures an MLS Cup final spot next week. But if that happens, it will be on a foundation of a successful stand against the initial Red Bull barrage, and if that's to happen, there might be few more important players on the field than Tchani.
If he does his job, he'll know that at least one player on the opposing team understands his value.