Montreal Impact sporting director Olivier Renard has his eyes fixed on 2021.
The Belgian has had a busy few weeks. Renard traded away Evan Bush to the Vancouver Whitecaps, transferred Saphir Taider to Saudi club Al Ain and dealt for international roster spots. All of those decisions, he states, were made to position his club for a strong 2021 season.
“For us, it’s about the long term. We are looking to invest in players for the 2021 season,” Renard said. “Saphir’s transfer frees strategic space under the salary cap which will save us some money for the 2021 season budget. We have decisions to make and strategies to build as a club and the goal is to become stronger in 2021.”
For Renard, the Algerian's transfer was a win-win situation. Renard added that Taider didn't refuse to play in the Impact’s last few games and he “was injured, or else he would have wanted to help his teammates.”
“I was in contact with his agent and [Al Ain] manifested their interest,” Renard said. “[Taider] asked us to consider the offer because it was an opportunity for him and his family. After agreeing on a transfer fee with the club, we opened the door for Saphir.”
The only new faces to expect from the Impact are names that have already been announced. Homegrown signing Keesean Ferdinand may take up Taider’s roster spot. The 16-year-old fullback is already with the club in New Jersey. Steeven Saba is also close to a return and, if all goes well, will be traveling to Jersey with the team following Saturday’s game against Inter Miami CF (7:30 pm ET | MLS LIVE on ESPN+; TVAS, TSN 1/4 in Canada).
Fullback Mustafa Kizza is expected to arrive in Montreal on Thursday night. The Ugandan international will quarantine in Quebec before being available for the club. Renard preached patience from fans in his case.
“He’s arriving right now but we need to remember that Kizza is a young African and it will be his first experience away from home,” Renard said. “We will need to give him time and for me it will be about getting used to the club and the city going into 2021.”
In anticipation for Kizza, Renard had acquired an international roster spot for the 2020 season in return for $75,000 in General Allocation Money and one for the 2021 season in return for $150,000 in GAM from D.C. United back in September. However, things didn’t go according to plan and Kizza wasn’t allowed to leave Uganda.
“We had the OK, we traded for the spot and then a few hours later the borders shut down in Uganda,” Renard said. “I’m not Harry Potter, I couldn’t know that the Ugandan government would decide that 24 hours in advance so it blocked a lot of things for us.”
One positive for Renard, along with Toronto FC and the Whitecaps, was an agreement with MLS to give the three Canadian clubs $150,000 in General Allocation Money in order to acquire an international roster spot.
“We took the decision to divide $75,000 this year and $150,000 [in the trade with D.C. United] for next season because we hope that this will continue next year because it would be more equitable for us [given the lack of green cards in Canada],” Renard said.
Renard added that he expects the market for international roster spots to be rougher next season, which is why he acted early to acquire one for 2021.
“For me with the COVID-19 situation, even American clubs might have issues going forward getting green cards so I think that the price will go up next season,” Renard said. “I managed to get an international roster spot for next year at $150,000 in GAM which for me might be worth more next year.”
