MLS Club de Foot Montreal

Montreal Impact Kicks off 2017 Season this Saturday in San Jose

March 3, 2017 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Club de Foot Montreal News Release


SAN JOSE, California - The Montreal Impact will get its sixth MLS season underway this Saturday night, when it takes on the San Jose Earthquakes at Avaya Stadium. This season opener will be broadcast starting at 10pm ET on TVA Sports, TSN and 98,5fm, and at 9pm ET for the pregame show on CJAD 800.

"The emotions are starting to flow back in and it's the real deal now," said Impact head coach Mauro Biello. "We've worked hard in the last month and a half in preseason, and now we get to show what we've been working on in this game against San Jose. The players are motivated. The excitement is high and we've got a big challenge in front of us, but we're ready to work hard and try to find some success there."

Bleu-blanc-noir favours stability After reaching the Eastern Conference Championship in 2016, the Impact has brought back every one of the regular starters that got the team to that stage, including the explosive forward trio of Nacho Piatti (21 goals last season), Dominic Oduro (two goals and three assists in the MLS Cup Playoffs) and Matteo Mancosu (four goals in five playoff games).

This group has also welcomed into the fold Homegrown Players Ballou Jean-Yves Tabla and Louis Beland-Goyette, former New York Red Bulls defender Chris Duvall and former Toronto FC left-back Daniel Lovitz, as well as forward Nick DePuy and midfielder Shamit Shome, both 2017 MLS SuperDraft picks. The Bleu-blanc-noir has also brought in Argentinean midfielder Adrian Arregui on loan from CA Temperley.

"We want to repeat what we achieved last season and do better," said Nacho Piatti. "It all starts on Saturday. All players in the team enjoy good relationships with each other. We want to keep going like this, all together, in San Jose, and pick up three points there."

This season opener will be team captain Patrice Bernier's last as a professional player, as he will retire following the 2017 campaign. Bernier, the only current Impact player to have started the Impact's first MLS game on March 10, 2012, in Vancouver, has thus far played in 124 MLS regular season games.

No fewer than seven current Impact players started the 2016 season opener: goalkeeper Evan Bush, defenders Victor Cabrera, Laurent Ciman and Ambroise Oyongo, as well as midfielders Marco Donadel, Nacho Piatti and Dominic Oduro. Hassoun Camara, Anthony Jackson-Hamel and Calum Mallace, for their part, all came on as substitutes on that night of March 6, 2016, in a 3-2 win at Vancouver's BC Place.

San Jose looking for first playoff berth in five seasons Winners of the Supporters Shield in 2012, the Quakes haven't made the MLS Cup Playoffs since. Head coach Dominic Kinnear's team finished last season in ninth place in the Western Conference, with the worst attacking performance in MLS (32 goals in 34 games).

But the Quakes have brought in reinforcements: defenders Harold Cummings and Florian Jungwirth, midfielder Jahmir Hyka and forwards Marco Urena and Danny Hoesen. Homegrown full-back Nick Lima has also been promoted to the first team.

"We're going to San Jose with serenity," said defender Hassoun Camara. "It's the beginning of the season, and we know from experience that preseason results mean nothing. The team that draws the most benefits from its work in preseason will pick up the win. We're going there with an ambitious frame of mind."

The Impact's record against the Quakes stands at a commendable three wins and two draws. In San Jose, the Bleu-blanc-noir is unbeaten, with two ties and three goals scored. Midfielder Dominic Oduro has scored two career goals against the Quakes, while Patrice Bernier and Nacho Piatti have both registered a goal and an assist. Goalkeeper Evan Bush has won his only career game against San Jose, a 3-1 win at Stade Saputo, on September 28, 2016.

Following game

The Impact's 2017 home opener, the climax of a full week of activities, takes place at the Olympic Stadium against the recently crowned MLS Cup champions, Seattle Sounders FC, on Saturday, March 11, at 7pm ET (TVA Sports, 98,5FM & TSN 690). Excellent tickets are still available on impactmontreal.com or at 1-866-908-9090.

Check out the Club de Foot Montreal Statistics



Major League Soccer Stories from March 3, 2017


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central