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FC Montreal Unveils 2016 Roster

March 1, 2016 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
FC Montreal News Release


MONTREAL - FC Montreal announced on Tuesday the roster for its second USL season, which will start on Friday, March 25, against Bethlehem Steel FC, at 7pm, at the Olympic Stadium.

Former U18 players James Pantemis, Thomas Meilleur-Giguère and David Choinière have signed a USL contract and will join the team for the beginning of the season.

The group is composed of 22 Canadians, one Swiss and two Cameroonians. The majority of the players are coming from the development system of the Montreal Impact Academy.

The team will be coached by head coach and Academy director Philippe Eullaffroy. Simon Gatti will be his assistant, Jack Stern will be goalkeeper coach and Benoit Deplagne, who recently joined the club, will be fitness coach of the team.

GOALKEEPERS : James Pantemis, David Paulmin, Luca Leone

DEFENDERS: Janouk Charbonneau, Jems Geffrard, Zachary Sukunda, Mélé Temguia, Nevello Yoseke, Simon Lemire, Aron Mkungilwa, Thomas Meilleur-Giguère

MIDFIELDERS: Philippe Lincourt-Joseph, Alessandro Riggi, Marco Dominguez, Mastanabal Kacher, Yacine Ait Slimane, Fabio Morelli, Fabrice Mbvouvouma, Ballou Jean-Yves Tabla, Heikel Jarras, Louis Béland-Goyette, Samuel Duffek, David Choinière

FORWARDS: Jacques Haman, Charles Joly

"We believe in our development system, our playing identity and the identity of the club, so having a large majority of players developed at the club in the USL roster is simply logical for what we aim for: bringing a maximum of players as close as possible to the first-team level," said head coach Philippe Eullaffroy.

First-team players could be added to the roster for certain games, should the MLS team coaching staff want to give players some playing time and help injured players recover their fitness.

Once again, the team will be one of the youngest in the league with 11 players not yet in their twenties. Ballou Jean-Yves Tabla, aged only 16, will be the youngest player in the team.

"We are a really young team, but the 2015 experience will help the whole group to perform better earlier in the season," added Eullaffroy. "The cohesion, a result of the players sharing the same DNA, will help make up for this lack of experience. We aim to be in the playoff race this year."

In its first-ever USL season, FC Montreal finished in 10th position in the Eastern Conference with an 8-16-4 record. After a rough start, the club's second team got good results in the middle of the season, with a series of six wins in eight games. During the season, the team, already the youngest in the league, signed eight U18 players.

Winger Alessandro Riggi scored nine goals and got two assists, finishing the season as the best scorer of the team and 14th-best in the USL. Throughout the year, FC Montreal players won USL Team of the Week honours on 16 occasions.

No. LAST NAME FIRST NAME POS. AGE (on Feb. 29) NATIONALITY FORMER CLUB

41 Pantemis James G 19 Canada Lakeshore

70 Paulmin David G 20 Canada AS St-Eustache

65 Leone Luca G 22 Canada Brampton United

66 Charbonneau Janouk D 20 Canada AS Hull

69 Geffrard Jems D 21 Canada CS Rivière-des-Prairies

73 Sukunda Zachary D 20 Canada AS Hull

74 Temguia Mélé D 20 Canada Verts de Sherbrooke

42 Yoseke Nevello D/M 19 Canada Fury d'Ottawa

44 Lemire Simon D 19 Canada Verts de Sherbrooke

59 Mkungilwa Aron D 19 Canada CS Longueuil

64 Meilleur-Giguère Thomas D 18 Canada Arsenal de l'Assomption

46 Lincourt-Joseph Philippe M 21 Canada FC Boisbriand

49 Riggi Alessandro M 22 Canada Conquérants de Laval

50 Dominguez Marco M 20 Canada Braves d'Ahuntsic

53 Kacher Mastanabal M 20 Canada Lakeshore

57 Ait Slimane Yacine M 20 Canada CS Longueuil

72 Morelli Fabio M 20 Switzerland FC Neuchâtel

43 Mbvouvouma Fabrice M 18 Cameroon Rainbow FC

54 Tabla Ballou Jean-Yves Tabla M 16 Canada Panellinios

48 Jarras Heikel M 19 Canada Phénix des Rivières

58 Béland-Goyette Louis M 20 Canada Lakeshore

61 Duffek Samuel M 19 Canada CS Longueuil

67 Choinière David M 19 Canada Celtix Haut-Richelieu

47 Haman Jacques F 21 Cameroon Coton Sport de Garoua

63 Joly Charles F 20 Canada CS Repentigny

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