Montreal MLS roster discussion

[Kurosawa]

Right now one player is confirmed by the club, Colombian defender Nelson Rivas. Accordong to some local journalist, Evan Bush and Hassoun Camara will be anounced soon as new Imoact playet. Simom Gatti is also said to be close to joining them, being in the finsl process of negotiating his contract. Nevio Pizzolito, Eduardo Sebrango and Mignane Diouf have been invited to training camp next january and PR Mayard, David Testo, Philippe Billy and Ali Gerba will not be a part of the team next year.

[Keano]

http://www.rds.ca/impact/chroniques/327996.html

I'm a fan of the Gerba that came in fit and motivated to score 13 goals in the second half of two seasons ago. But I guess we've only seen evidence of that Gerba a few times here and there over his career. Still, with his knack for the net, the only reason they wouldn't keep him around even as a super sub must be that they are planning to bring in multiple strikers of a higher pedigree, which is encouraging from a club perspective. However it's too bad that they won't be Canadians.

[Keano]

http://www.canadiansoccernews.com/co...nd-Gerba-leave

I'm glad Sebrango has been invited back as a mentor but not so much Pizzo, I would have liked to see him handed a front office role or something... he often appeared slow for the NASL last season.

I really hope they are also inviting back Lowery, who I thought could have been a good honorable mention for the unsung hero award that went to Gatti.

[Kurosawa]

http://www.impactmontreal.com/News/N...ArticleID=1768

Hassoun Camara has oficially signed for 2012.

[Keano]

http://www.impactmontreal.com/News/N...ArticleID=1768

Hassoun Camara has oficially signed for 2012.

This would have probably been a forgone conclusion, but still it's exciting to see it in print: this guy is QUAL. I. TY.

[pappinchris]

"Defenders Philippe Billy and Cameron Knowles, midfielders David Testo, Luke Kreamalmeyer, as well as forwards Ali Gerba, Pierre-Rudolph Mayardand Marco Terminesi, who were part of the 2011 edition, will not be back with the club in 2012. Further decisions on the remaining players from the 2011 team will be taken over the course of the next 6-8 weeks." - impact website

[Keano]

So, so far there are no official decisions for the following 2011 players:

Agourram, Reda - F (really hope this guy can stay healthy and finally take that next step)
Bush, Evan - G (rumored signed for MLS 2012)
Di Lorenzo, Leonardo - M (strange, not sure what separates him from a Billy or a Legall at this point... other than naturalized Canadian status)
Diouf, Mignane - F
Gatti, Simon - D (rumored signed for MLS 2012)
Gaudette, Bill - G
Ilcu, Mircea - F
Lowery, Amir - M
Montaño, Miguel - F (lone player... not sure of his availability)
Pizzolitto, Nevio - D (hopefully a possible training camp invite would just be as a nicety... he is not MLS caliber at this point sad to say)
Pore, Ryan - F (lone player... not sure of his availability)
Sebrango, Eduardo - F
Sutton, Greg - G
Ubiparipovic, Sinisa - M
Westlake, Ian - M

Nor the trialists:

Chimbonda, Pascal D
Zywiecki, Alexis - D
Del Aguila, José Javier - M
Watson, Jamie - M/F
White, Jeremiah - F
Knight, Wes - D
Ristic, Bratislav - M

[Grizzly]

This is my take on who should be signed:

No: Agourram, Reda - F Yes we all like him and he has had injury problems but he hasn't even come close to proving himself as an NASL player when healthy let alone a potential MLS player. He has had ample opportunity and has only scored 2 goals in 30 games. I have seen little besides speed from him and he certainly is not a good finisher. He needs to find a NASL team next year and stay healthy and get established at that level before thinking of MLS. Well below Ilcu and Diouff in the pecking order and also raw talent in my opinion.

Yes: Bush, Evan - G Has potential to be a MLS starter. Not 100% sure he is there now but we are going to have to take some risks in our first year and this is one I would take. I probably would not spend too much money on a keeper as an expansion team and would rather put money into decent defenders and mids.

No: Di Lorenzo, Leonardo - M Sad to say because of a great history with the team but should not even be under consideration. Two years ago he would have been a decent MLS player. His form has rapidly declined, this year he wasn't even a good NASL player. I have the impression his body has suffered a lot of wear and tear and that he is fairly fragile. Still only 30 but looks like a 30 year old player with the body of a 40 year old player.

Yes: Diouf, Mignane - F At minimum salary he would be worth taking a chance on. Very raw but has the skill to play at MLS level even if it may take a while to develop it. I would give him a year as a reserve team player and occassional sub and see if he can develop his raw skills. However, I am not taking into consideration the shoplifting charge and other possible character issues which might makes this not a risk worth taking.

Maybe: Gatti, Simon - D Not so high on him as some others here. He gave a lot of effort this year but not the most skillful player. Was part of a very poor back 4 and often when I looked at replays of goals he seemed to make as many mistakes as the others did back there. I still think he is a pretty good NASL defender but he is one of those guys who I am not sure can bring his skills to the next level. On the other hand there are some poorer players than him in MLS currently so maybe not a bad depth signing if the price is right.

Yes: Gaudette, Bill - G Before the injury he was not poor but not quite the level we were expecting. Bush was better when taking over. Nevertheless I think he has the skill to be an MLS keeper and to push for the number 1 spot and we have seen that before from him even if we did not see it this year. Again at the right price he could be a good signing with Bush if we are looking to go cheap in the nets and invest further out.

Yes: Ilcu, Mircea - F Really impressive in the games he came into this year. Obviously a development player for the reserve team/subs bench but definitely one to hold on to.

No: Lowery, Amir - M Was alright this year but again a player of limited skill and potential. Could be a depth player signing but I think we can get as good or better in the expansion draft.

No: Montaño, Miguel - F Has some potential and gets himself into some good positions but then he usually does not score from them. Didn't really prove to me he was a NASL starting forward so a bit hard to say I am convinced he is MLS quality. He might develop into a MLS player but we don't have his rights and I would not pay much to get them either. He is Seattle's to develop.

No: Pizzolitto, Nevio - D Another guy like DeLo who was a great NASL player for the team but is past his prime. Unlike DeLo I am not sure he was MLS calibre even in his prime but he certainly isn't now.

Maybe: Pore, Ryan - F Showed more than Montano though was very on and off. Might be a yes if judging only on the last two games but that is no way to judge players. Even then a couple of highscoring NASL games does not mean he can do that in MLS and he has not done so in the past (2 goals in 62 games with Portland and Kansas City) even if he did not get much of a chance or much time in Portland this year. Excellent speed and skills but just very inconsistent. He might be worth taking a chance on but not sure it is worth giving up much to acquire him and the 80 000 salary cap hit is pretty high to take a chance on someone so I would edge towards no.

Yes: Sebrango, Eduardo - F Probably worth just signing him for inspiration and leadership alone. Even without that, I think he can still play at a very high level and at the least deserves the chance to show he can. Probably not a starter but a great guy to bring in for the last 20 minutes of the game. The opposite of DiLo, he seems to have a body 10 years younger than he is.

No/Why is he even in camp? Sutton, Greg - G Both Bush and Gaudette are more skilled than Sutton. Another player who looks and plays far older than he is. At best a backup but looked really rusty when he came in for the one Impact game he played and a backup has to be able to keep sharp when not playing.

Yes: Ubiparipovic, Sinisa - M With the strange MLS rules, even though we signed him as a free agent New York may still hold his rights. He was probably our best player at the end of the season so as long as we can get his rights at a reasonable fee we should sign him. From what I heard he had some attitude problems in New York that effected his play. Now he realizes this is his last shot at MLS so is highly motivated. Could be a starter for us. He is a MLS quality player which is more than one can say for many of the players who played for Vancouver this year. We need to sign as many players of this calibre as possible, that will be the key to next year.

Yes: Westlake, Ian - M Also played very well despite a slow start with the team. A player of similar calibre to Ubiparipovic and another decent MLS starter level player. As long as he is not asking for too much money we should sign him.

As for the releases, I am a bit disappointed Gerba was released because I think he could be a good MLS striker but on the other hand he would not be cheap and there are always a lot of variables with him so possibly it is the best decision. Billy has the talent and ability to play MLS but for whatever reason was only a mediocre NASL player this year so possibly a good decision there as well. None of the other releases were surprising.

[Keano]

No/Why is he even in camp? Sutton, Greg

I agree with all your assessments but in the case of Gatti, while I agree he's not particularity skilled, fast, or anything... he seems like the type of player that does whatever is needed to make the play... I agree with you that we're in trouble if he's our starting fullback, but at the same time he's a very cheap, Canadian, versatile and polyvalent player with lots of second effort that I think would be very useful to have on the bench.

[Kurosawa]

I agree with all your assessments but in the case of Gatti, while I agree he's not particularity skilled, fast, or anything... he seems like the type of player that does whatever is needed to make the play... I agree with you that we're in trouble if he's our starting fullback, but at the same time he's a very cheap, Canadian, versatile and polyvalent player with lots of second effort that I think would be very useful to have on the bench.

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