Montreal Impact Discussion Thread
Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2015 8:38 pm
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There was a moment, during a Montreal Impact half-field scrimmage at Pachuca’s Estadio Hidalgo, when everyone realized that Ignacio Piatti was ready for the season.
Picking up a pass near his own goal, Piatti lobbed his marker with his first touch. He ran onto the ball, managed to control it despite a bounce off a defender and lifted it past another opponent. Thrown off by the goalkeeper advancing toward him, Piatti turned sideways, stepped onto the ball, rolled it behind him, turned back to face the goalmouth and blasted a left-footed drive into the opposite top corner of the net.
Early during training camp, Impact head coach Frank Klopas said Piatti “may” play in the second leg of the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals (Tuesday, 8 pm ET, FOX Sports 2, Galavision); Piatti had undergone surgery last November for tendinitis in his left knee. Any nagging doubts about his health were put to rest on the Hidalgo grass.
As Montreal’s only Designated Player following Marco Di Vaio’s retirement, Piatti shoulders massive responsibilities. The expectations were high last year, and so they remain this year.
“I showed how I could play last season,” Piatti told MLSsoccer.com last week, hours before his impressive goal in training. “I’ll try to do the same, for the team. After the injury, I couldn’t play, but this year, hopefully, I’ll play every game, score goals and help the team get as far as it can.”
So far, so good. Piatti did play 90 the following night, as Montreal and Pachuca fought to a 2-2 draw. That had to relieve the Montreal supporters just as much as the result did.
He displayed some of the moves that Montreal fans yearned for late on last season, when the stakes had dropped but there was still a Nacho Piatti to discover. Their new DP took MLS by storm, scoring four goals and providing one assist in his first six league games.
But the tendinitis became too much to bear by Sept. 20. With Piatti down, San Jose’s Pablo Pintos signaled to the Impact bench. It was the last we saw of Piatti that season.
“I did everything I could to play those last games,” Piatti said. “I came to play. I wanted to play Marco’s last game. But I would have played 35, 45 minutes, and I would have had to come off because of the tendinitis. But I was still in the locker room, with the team, cheering them on. Now, thanks to God, I’m fine.”
The Montreal Impact announced on Tuesday that forward Cameron Porter will undergo surgery on his left knee to repair an ACL tear. Porter suffered the injury on Saturday, during the first half of the Impact's away game against the New England Revolution.
Back in Montreal on Sunday, Porter was diagnosed after meeting with Montreal doctors Tuesday afternoon. He is scheduled for surgery next week and is expected to be out approximately nine to 12 months.
Porter, 21, was a third-round pick (45th overall) out of Princeton in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft. He saw action for the Impact almost immediately, coming off the bench in both their Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League games against Pachuca and scoring the dramatic equalizer that sent Montreal through to the semifinals. He had appeared as a substitute in the team's league opener against D.C. United before starting the first leg of the CCL semifinal against Alajuelense and the game at New England.
edfmx86 wrote:Heh, I wish there was at least one Montreal fan here to get excited about CCL here with us. Game this week!
The Montreal Impact announced on Thursday that the club has acquired Canadian international midfielder Kyle Bekker from FC Dallas, in return for defender Bakary Soumare. As per MLS policy, further terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“Bakary had asked us to be traded because he was not happy with his playing time. I accepted his request and I am happy that we could find a quick solution which is also positive for the club,” said Head Coach and Director of Player Personnel Frank Klopas.
“We are happy to bring a young Canadian player to our team who has a lot of potential. We look forward to having him integrate with our group,” said Impact Technical Director Adam Braz. "We thank Bakary for his services and wish him all the best with his new club.”
Bekker, 24, is currently playing his third MLS season after being drafted third overall by Toronto FC in the 2013 MLS SuperDraft. He has played eight games, including two starts, with FC Dallas this season, recording his first career assist last June 19 in a 1-1 tie in Colorado. He has played 37 career regular season games for 1,765 minutes of play, including 18 starts, since making his MLS debut in 2013.
He also took part in six Amway Canadian Championship games and one Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup game in his career.
Montreal Impact forward Didier Drogba has reportedly retired in order to rejoin Chelsea as an assistant to new manager Guus Hiddink, according to Herve Penot of L'Equipe.
Drogba will reportedly join the Blues' coaching staff in time for Chelsea's Champions League Round of 16 clash against Paris Saint-Germain.
Penot adds that the two parties still need to agree to monetary compensation for Drogba's release, but that shouldn't lessen Drogba's intent to join Chelsea once more.
Drogba's ties at Stamford Bridge are strong, having spent much of his career playing - and scoring - for the Blues. He was recently spotted with owner Roman Abramovich and Hiddink taking in a Chelsea match while Montreal is on break for the MLS off-season.
The Impact admitted that it would be tough to retain Drogba and that negotiations had begun between the two parties by last Friday.