The Montreal Impact are likely candidates to be active in acquiring players as the offseason moves forward, but one of the arrivals is unlikely to be Valencia midfielder Pablo Piatti, for whom the team was reported to have agreed to a deal.
Italian reporter Nicolò Schira reported earlier Sunday that the Impact had agreed on a deal with the La Liga side to bring the diminutive Argentine (pictured, lef) to MLS, but the team denied the rumors.
“This is not true,” an Impact spokesperson told MLSsoccer.com when asked if the team had talked to the player.
RDS analyst Patrick Leduc also reported that an Impact source had denied the rumor:
Piatti, 24, was part of the Argentina team that won the 2007 U-20 World Cup in Canada, alongside current Manchester City forward Sergio Agüero and Real Madrid winger Ángel Di Maria. He featured in six of the Albiceleste's seven games and started in all four of their knockout games. He has played in Spain since 2008, after Almería purchased him from Estudiantes de la Plata, and transferred to Valencia in 2011.
The Impact have parted ways with six players this season, including veterans Alessandro Nesta to retirement and Davy Arnaud to D.C. United. Their lone acquisition to date has been rookie Eric Miller, the team's No. 5 pick in the 2014 MLS Superdraft and the only one of the Impact's four picks to sign with the team, by virtue of his Generation adidas deal.
Montreal defender Matteo Ferrariwent public in late January with his dissatification over the team's lack of activity in the transfer market, but sporting director Nick De Santis indicated in his response to the comments that he expects one or two more players to sign on.
