Toronto FC square off against Columbus Crew SC on Saturday afternoon with several things at stake, including a potential berth in the Audi 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs for Crew SC.
But let's be honest, most people will tune in for the face-to-face meeting of the joint leaders in the hunt for the Audi Golden Boot. TFC's Sebastian Giovinco and Crew SC's Kei Kamara are tied at the top of the goal-scoring chart with 22 goals each. Will the winner be decided on Saturday?
Here are six things to know about this marksman's contest.
1. Kei might be the most efficient goal-scorer in MLS history.
Of Kamara's 22 goals this year, 20 have been knocked in with his first touch. And those two non-first-touch goals required just one extra touch. In other words, 24 touches have led to 22 goals. That's efficiency.
2. Head to head, Kamara has the lead.
The Reds and Crew SC have met twice this year already, and both Giovinco and Kamara started both games. Kamara has two goals and GIovinco has a goal and an assist. The record is 1-0-1 for Columbus.
3. Don't let Giovinco run at the defense.
This should seem self-evident to any defender who has done his homework on the Atomic Ant, but even this late in the season, Giovinco has the ability to "surprise" peope and make backlines look as flimsy as spaghetti.
4. Don't leave Kamara open in the penalty area.
Our resident stats researcher Ben Baer investigated where on the field Giovinco's and Kamara's goals come from. One thing is clear: Kamara owns the goal mouth.
5. Giovinco appears happy to score goals for TFC for a long time.
After his mind-blowing season in MLS and his strong performances for Italy in Euro 2016 qualifying, Seba has been the subject of several transfer rumors, including one that has him joining Barcelona in January. But the man himself seems uninterested in such a move, telling the Italian press, "Things are great here. The only thing crossing my mind is to go on vacation in January. I haven’t gone on vacation for the past year and a half."
6. Kamara likes to "power up" before games.
This week, in a fun MLSsoccer.com comic strip called "Game Day with Kei Kamara," we learned that Crew SC's big forward kisses his cleats before every game. Yes, we're going to try that in our Sunday morning pickup game.
