Article content

Does the name Blerim Dzemaili mean anything to you?

Unless you’re a huge soccer fan you’ve probably never heard of the Swiss international midfielder who plays for Bologna FC in Italy’s Serie A. But it’s a name Montrealers will get to know this year because Dzemaili will become the Impact’s new designated player for the 2017 MLS season, replacing Didier Drogba.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Blerim Dzemaili era dawns as Impact turns page on Didier Drogba in '17 Back to video

“I’m not hiding it: Dzemaili’s contract is a multi-year deal,” Impact president Joey Saputo said during a season-ending news conference in December. “He’ll be in Bologna until June 2017, and he will then be transferred to Montreal. He’s not hiding that, either. He’s ready to come to Montreal.”

Saputo is also a majority shareholder and chairman of Bologna, and there is obviously a strong relationship between the two clubs. Forward Matteo Mancosu joined the Impact last July on loan from the Italian club and Marco Di Vaio, the Impact’s first designated player in MLS, also came to Montreal from Bologna.