Player Profile: Mohammed Saeid

In the aftermath of the Expansion Draft, we will be bringing profiles of the new players (the ones that have not been traded yet). Today, we start with the holding midfielder from Columbus.

It was a long trip from Örebro, Sweden to Columbus, Ohio for the Swedish-born midfielder, Mohammed Saeid. But it was a fruitful move. Starting 42 games for the Crew and appearing in 50 games, Saeid has been a solid acquisition.

Saeid started his youth career at local club, BK Foward. As a youth player, Saeid was noticed by Fulham and was invited for a tryout. He was not offered a contract, but Saeid was offered a contract with West Bromwich Albion. He spent seven years with the Baggies before returning to his hometown.

Saeid rejoined his childhood club BK Foward and played until 2011 before he joined Allsvenskan side, Örebro SK. Saeid made 68 appearances and tallied eight goals for Örebro until his contract expired in 2014.

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Saeid has been a stalwart in the midfield for Columbus. He has been filling in for injury in different roles for the Crew since 2015. The reports from the Crew are that Saeid was a workman player that did not even complain when he had broken bones in his back.

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As I said before, Saeid appeared a total of 50 times for Columbus during the last two seasons. He did not find the back of the net in his time with Columbus, but he did add six assists (five of them coming in 2016). He was a solid contributor for the Crew. To the point that Massive Report actually protected Saeid in their Expansion Draft predicted lists. In their words, “His 2016 salary was $120,000. I'd make him a top pick if he were available in an expansion draft. He's not the most physical, but it's rare to find such a pure passer who can control tempo.”

He may have not been the top pick, but as Massive Report pointed out, he seems to be a great pick. He is likely to be slotted into the central midfield of Coach Heath’s 4-2-3-1 formation, and Saeid seems to fit that role perfectly.

Excited about the pick? Let us know!