MONTREAL – The Montreal Impact held their Members General Assembly on Monday night. Faced with questions from season-ticket holders – and season-ticket holders only, as there was no media availability – the front office and staff said roster moves are coming.
But there was no breaking news on this day.
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“In the next few weeks, we’ll be able to act quickly on that matter,” said Richard Legendre, executive vice-president of soccer operations and Stade Saputo. “Believe us when we say that 2015 will be a good year for the Montreal Impact.”
Added club president Joey Saputo: “2014 was a difficult year, and I don’t want to go through another MLS season like this one. We’re not a last-place team, and we will not be a last-place team.”
Head coach Frank Klopas’ team advanced to the quarterfinals of the CONCACAF Champions League – Montreal all but confirmed that the home leg of their tie against Pachuca will be played on March 3, 2015 – but missed the MLS Cup Playoffs by a whopping 21 points. Klopas has gotten his action plan approved by Saputo: He wants to, among other things, find ways to decrease the number of injuries within his squad, address box defending, correct the Impact's set-piece struggles and improve the scouting department.
On this last point, Saputo said the club’s modus operandi – which works through agents in different markets – and its networking practices are still in their nascent stage.
“We’ve been in MLS for three years,” Saputo said. “It’s only been three years that we’ve started working with certain people. It’ll take time to feel comfortable with certain people.”
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On the player recruitment side, Klopas is keen to address the spine of the team, echoing hints dropped by Montreal’s director of international business development, Nick De Santis. The departure of center back Matteo Ferrari has provided room for an experienced defender. Klopas is also looking for a defensive midfielder, a box-to-box midfielder, and depth up top.
But regardless of who comes in, Klopas is adamant that the club must undergo a transition off the field as much as on it.
“We need to change the mentality of the group,” Klopas said. “We need to make some changes here. We need to bring players with technical and creative ability, but it’s very important for me that they have the winning mentality, to bring a lot of leadership on the field. Three things are key: They’ve got to play with determination, bring intensity to every game, and above all, bring emotion.”
