Last week I wrote an article on Toronto FC Academy and possible candidates for the next graduating class, so with the Montréal Impact coming into Major League Soccer next season I’ve decided to do something similar showcasing some of the talented players that could get a call up. However, the situation is a little different in Montréal as they are not only an expansion side having to go through an Expansion Draft, Re-Entry Draft and the MLS Super Draft. They are also going under stadium renovations as well as being coached by a former MLS veteran and first time coach Jesse Marsch who is part of former US National Team Coach Bob Bradley's coaching tree as one of his assistants.
The other aspect that makes their situation different, and what makes calling this group of players the 2012/2013 graduating class misleading, is they have already given most of their young players a chance to train and/or play with the first team when part of the North American Soccer League. They have an ownership group in Joey Saputo and the Saputo Family that although take their fair share of criticism, for amongst other things being a little too “hands on” in club matters, has the good sense to hire “soccer guys”, something up until this point MLSE failed to do with Toronto FC.
One of these people is Director of Player Development and Academy Coach Philippe Eullaffroy, who has helped build and strengthen a solid pipeline of talent in the province of Quebec and used his connections in France as a former player in French soccer and academy coach with Stade de Reims and Troyes to find, recruit and develop French talent for the Canadian club. They have also had sponsorship from the government of Quebec as well as well maintained academy facilities to work from, two things that certainly help when it comes to player development.
While I don’t want or like to make comparisons between the academies of either team in my opinion I think Montréal Impact Academy is a little further along in their development of players then Toronto FC, as the players I mention in this article are only five of about eight to ten players that could easily make this list.
GK - Maxime Crepeau
Even though he is only 17 years old this is a player that is showing immense promise and is definitely in the club's plans. The first aspect that I notice about him is he is very vocal; he takes very good care of his defenders and likes to organize them to his liking. He’ll tell them when to push up the field for an offside trap, when to shift over and is especially keen on letting his defenders know how to mark on set pieces whether it is by setting up the wall or man marking on corner kicks.
The main aspect of his game that he can improve on is his distribution of the ball, he’s very capable of delivering passes from the back and is even capable of starting attacks but he’s not always consistent. He also could stand to hit the weight room - this could be that he’s still growing into his body but he’s something of a stick figure at the moment and can get bullied by larger players.
He’s currently a part of the Canadian U17 National Team and represented them in this past summer’s FIFA U17 World Cup; unfortunately a knee injury in the first match against Uruguay ended his tournament. He has already been training with the first team on a semi regular basis and it shows in his game. Whether he continue this under new Coach Jesse Marsch remains to be seen but don’t be shocked if he gets a few chances in Nutrilite Canadian Championship games or depending on how the season goes during the latter part of the MLS campaign.
MID - Wandrille Lefevre
Of the five players I’m mentioning in this article I believe this one is the most “ready”. Originally from Chartres, France he is the oldest of the bunch at 22 years of age and has already featured twice for the Impact first team making his debut against FC Edmonton. This player has really good ball control and has proven at the Canadian Soccer League level at least that he can take over a match, primarily playing just behind the forward he is also versatile enough to play in a deeper position and be the” quarterback” of the team.
This is a player that could be very useful to the first team in a substitute role and can slowly get familiar to the MLS level, it will be interesting to see what happens with him because he’s at the age where players start to really break through and make an impression.
FWD - Mircea Ilcu
This is a player that the entire Montréal Impact Academy organization is really high on and has shown flashes of brilliance, as he has made eleven first team appearances this season, started in four matches and contributed with one goal and one assist.
He's a player that will definitely be appearing in pre-season and Nutrilie Canadian Championship games and depending on what system Coach Jesse Marsch deploys can complement a big central forward or can be slotted out wide in a three forward formation.
MID - Bastian Bourgault
While his teammate Wandrille Lefevre provide a more controlled, cerebral approach to the game Bastian Bourgault is more electrifying player using pace and athleticism and really compliment each other well. This is yet another player who has been training with the first team on a semi regular basis and it’s only a matter of time before he becomes a regular.
Where his future can be as either a wide midfielder or a central attacking midfielder depending on the system. The other major plus this player has shown is good positioning, when he collects the ball he only need to make one smooth transition and then he’s off to the races.
This is yet another player that could find himself playing in pre-season and/or the NCC.
DEF - Ismail Benomar
This is the one player of the bunch that I could see the club holding back for a few reasons, but mainly due to him only being 17 years of age and the fact that he’s a central defender. I don’t know much of Jesse Marsch as a coach but as a player he a defence first type and I assume he’s of the philosophy that central defenders need to be given as much time as possible to perfect the aspects of the game that are not instinctive (ie shielding the ball, playing passes from back to front etc…).
Ismail Benomar is growing into a solid defender and with the recent call up of teammate and fellow defender Karl Ouimette it’s only a matter of time before he joins him in the first team. Benomar was teammates with the aforementioned Maxime Crepeau on the Canadian U17 World Cup team, on the bench for the first two matches against Uruguay and England while getting a starting place in the final match against Rwanda.
I can see this player getting significant training time with the first team but is maybe a year away from getting any significant playing time.
Montréal Impact will be an intriguing storyline to follow for many reasons and the development of their young players is certainly one of them. There is a lot of unearthed talent within the province of Quebec as well as in France and with Philippe Eullaffroy running the show those pipeline to Montréal Impact Academy will be even stronger.
Kamal Hylton is Owner/Freelance Soccer Writer at Hylton Sports Media,
he specializes in covering Youth Development in Canada and the
CONCACAF Region as well as European leagues such as Bundesliga, Serie A and UEFA Champions League. Follow him on Twitter to view all
his work.
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