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Aaron Nielsen ,

December 5, 2015 Email

Aaron Nielsen



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It seems longer than eight months ago when I wrote my Montreal Impact Analytical preview prior to the 2015 MLS season, and it was just a few days after Cameron Porter scored his last minute goal against Pachuca in the 2015 CONCACAF Champions League. The Impact would make the final of the tournament, losing out to Mexican Champions America CF. The 2015 season would also see them lose the Canadian Championship, fire their coach, sign soccer great Didier Drogba, and then become the first Canadian MLS team to win a playoff game. They would finally lose out in the Eastern Conference semi-finals to Columbus 4-3 in extra time, despite winning another home playoff game 2-1. Interestingly, as I write this 2015 season review, America CF is preparing for the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup where they are scheduled to play against another club I wrote about in the past on RNO. Chinese powerhouse Guangzhou Evergrande, who won the 2015 AFC Champions League, and then potentially Argentinean side River Plate who won the 2015 Copa Libertadores and FC Barcelona who won last season’s UEFA Champions League. When I wrote my preview it was pre-Drogba, Frank Klopas was in charge of the club, and I was both analytical and critical of the Impact squandering upcoming opportunities for 2015 season. This included predicting America CF would win the CONCACAF Champions League and the Impact themselves would not make the 2015 MLS playoffs and instead struggle at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with new expansion clubs New York City FC and Orlando City. So the question becomes when reviewing the Montreal Impact 2015 season was it a successful season or a season of missed opportunities? Or looking forward with Mauro Bello in charge and Drogba on the current roster, how can the club establish itself as an MLS Eastern Conference favorite opposed to a club that beats all odds and are celebrated for making three cup runs in 2015 yet no trophies? The following is a statistical and scouting account of Montreal Impact for the 2015 MLS season produced by my company ProspectXI.com:



Of all the management structure for the Canadian MLS teams I'm the biggest fan of the Montreal Impact and Joey Saputo being the public face of the club. I think it is fairly well known my issues with the Toronto FC structure and an ownership group who knows little if nothing about soccer, so instead uses the corporate structure of the league to influence their hirings. In the case of the Vancouver Whitecaps, I understand that the city and club have a strong understanding of the game but especially in the past there has been a bit of an arrogance that they know best, but the results and some club decisions haven’t shown that. In the case of Saputo, at least he wears his decisions on his sleeves and is willing to deal with issues head on, which included the extra financial investments during the 2015 season. There are flaws in his view of North American soccer, first there was the Italian way is best, and although Alesandro Nesta, Marco Di Vaio and now Marco Donadel have made a positive influence on MLS, they haven't guaranteed success for the Impact. The veteran line-up and an MLS-experienced coach brought some success, including winning the Canadian Championship last season, but also got Klopas fired this year. Now it seems, which admittedly I'm a fan, there has been a greater concentration on local youth players in Quebec as well as recruiting youth players from French speaking countries. Beyond the Impact, Saputo should be congratulated for the effort his company has had on soccer at all levels of the game in Quebec, making it one of the most modern association in all of North America. That being said, and as I mentioned in my season preview, the Impact have been very poor in identifying American soccer and NCAA talent. When healthy, the one player I did like, Cameron Porter played a role with the team, but their 3rd overall pick Romario Williams has been a bust and of all the clubs in MLS they are the least influenced by American national or developed players. This does not diminish the value of players such as Evan Bush, who established himself as a decent MLS keeper in 2015, Dilly Duka who is a solid player who also has a tendency of the heroics. Donny Toia, who like Delgado in Toronto, was a very smart pick up from Chivas USA that I also agreed with during the dispersal draft. While Justin Mapp, Eric Miller and Callum Mallace are useful MLS players, and the question the Impact have going forward is will they be able to acquire like-minded American players or develop Canadians within who provide the same result. With the trade for Kyle Bekker, the Montreal Impact played six Canadians during the 2015 season, although with Patrice Bernier having his battle with Klopas all the Canadians were mostly used off the bench or as replacement players for the starting eleven. However, there were highlights for the Canadians and positives going forward. Newly Canadian International Wandrille Lefevre played strong when given time, Anthony Jackson-Hamel was a handful in limited action, Patrice Bernier had some influence especially in the playoffs and Kyle Bekker scored his first MLS career goal while with the Impact. Montreal have also some interesting talent within their Acadamy system and player who played on their USL squad FC Montreal. Keeper Maxime Crepeau, and outfield players Alessandro Riggi, Marco Dominguez, Mastanabal Kacher, Charles Joly, and Ballou Tabla the Impact are hoping can be merged into the first team over the next few years. Although the biggest influence on the Impact 2015 MLS season was something I talked about in last year’s review of the club in recruiting established French speaking talent who would feel comfortable within the Montreal Impact club. Didier Drogba was the big name and showed his ability scoring 11 goals in 11 games and was the main reason Montreal were able to make the playoffs. It’s hard to say if Drogba for the whole season in 2016 can be expected to do the same at 37 years old, but his influence on the club is worth every penny of his salary. As I wrote in my 2015 Montreal Impact preview, Laurent Ciman was a great signing, and proved that throughout the year, and is an example of the type of player Montreal can recruit to be a big difference maker. While I also like Ambroise Oyongo and despite Felipe Martins having a strong season with the New York Red Bulls, I feel the Impact will win that trade despite the other player Eric Alexander not performing in the same fashion he did with the Red Bulls, including his eight assists in 2014. The Impact should continue to try and attain more young players from French speaking African countries as a good recruiting strategy especially on the lower end of the salary scale. Montreal has also done well in recruiting from Central and South America. Ignacio Piatti might be one of the most underrated designated players in the MLS. He is a hard player to cover through his combination of skill and grittiness and now with Drogba upfront he has someone to play off of and provide opportunities for. Andres Romero has established himself as a goal scoring midfielder in MLS and him missing the playoffs through injury cost the Impact. Johan Venegas has a good skill set, although his willingness to fall down at any contact at all could hurt his chance of establishing himself as an MLS player. While Victor Cabrera was useful in defense during the 2015 MLS season, although on loan from fitting enough Argentinean side River Plate so I don't see him returning for the 2016 season. Nigel Reo-Coker headlines a group veterans that under Klopas and other Impact managers provided a core to rely on, and although these players don't have a lot of upside and on the pitch can slow down the rest of the team they were useful in grounding out points. Throughout the season players like Bernier and Donadel were crucial in key games, like how they held Giovinco and other Toronto FC players during the MLS Cup playoffs.

Montreal are not a perfect team and I don't expect head coach Bello to continue his success rate of nine wins, two losses, and three draws. However, it is great to see a Canadian in charge of an MLS club, and with Drogba on the team they will be expecting a quicker start in 2016 and to challenge for a top spot and not making the playoffs the last week of the season. For me the Impact are the only Canadian MLS team who could take a step backwards and be better off in the long run with their long term commitment to key players and young talent. There should be deserved criticism for a Toronto native who goes to TFC games and says "I'm a fan of the Montreal Impact", but the truth is I am and for someone who also supports the Canadian National Team. I feel the Impact are putting their effort in making that team better and almost feel if there wasn't the French/English divide in our country the Canadian National Team would be better off for it. I'm also a fan of the Impact because I'm a fan of Serie B in Italy, Ligue 2 in France, Leagues in Central and South America and grassroots soccer in Africa, and what the Montreal can potentially be excites me. That being said, completely rejecting the American soccer system will hurt the club and if they can create a well-rounded franchise the Impact can not only be successful in MLS, but like America CF and Guangzhou Evergrande, become a name in soccer that people should be aware of. Aaron Neilsen is a co-founder of Prospect XI (Prospect Eleven), a scouting network and online magazine dedicated to tracking/highlighting young players that refer to as "prospects" as well as their development pathways both within North America and worldwide. Follow PXI via www.prospectxi.com or on twitter @ProspectXI.