REPENTIGNY, Quebec – Usually, when meeting Sanna Nyassi for the first time, one can’t help but be caught off-guard by the tone of his voice.
For all the energy and pace he displays on the soccer field, the Gambian international’s words flow slowly, and they resonate just as loud as necessary for a microphone to pick them up. But just barely.
Not so much these days, though. Nyassi is on his best form of the season, having picked up two goals and an assist in the last four games he has played, and he is making noise with his movement on the pitch.
WATCH: Nyassi finishes off New York
The gorgeous game-winning volley he scored against the New England Revolution on July 18 certainly lifted him, but he is adamant that one moment of magic is not enough. Nyassi’s form and assertiveness are about consistency.
“I had a couple of good games that I put together, and that boosted up my confidence,” Nyassi told MLSsoccer.com after the Impact’s public training session on Monday. “My performances are consistent, and I want to keep it going.”
And Nyassi has faith not only in his own means, but also in those of the Montreal Impact as a whole. The trust among the group, he feels, has been a key component of the Impact’s recent performances at Stade Saputo, and everyone, including himself, knows they can play a major role any given day.
“That’s what a deep team is all about,” Nyassi said. “It doesn’t matter who starts. Whenever you start, or you come on as a sub, you help your team win in any way possible. And that’s what I did – I complemented the effort that my team put in. They had a great first half, and I just came in the second half [and] put the game away.”
And put the game away he did. Nyassi showed some nice skills in rounding New York Red Bulls goalkeeper Bill Gaudette for his fifth career goal against them. Incidentally, the winger registered his only MLS hat trick against those same Red Bulls – albeit as a member of the Colorado Rapids – back in July 2011.
“It’s something good to have, as a footballer: a team that you’re going to be scoring against all the time, whenever you play against them,” Nyassi admitted. “I hope it continues, I want to keep that record going.”
