Montreal Impact Report Cards: Grading Performances Before the Break

Who has a shined and who is disappointing up to now this season? A little before the middle of the season, MLS teams get a break due to the Gold Cup. With this break, it gives us a chance to take the time to grade the performances of each individual player this season.

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Goalkeepers

Evan Bush - Sometimes easy to forget that he was the golden glove winner of the 2014-15 CONCACAF Champions League, he is struggling to be decisive this season. With a youngster in the shadows who is making a case for himself, he will definitely need to do an 180 with the remainder of the season and make big saves to provide his team with wins. With only 60% save percentage, he is second to last in the keepers who have played more than 10 games. C+

Maxime Crépeau – Yet to receive his start in the MLS this season, he definitely made a case for himself during the Canadian Championship. Unfortunately, his national team selection didn’t give him the chance to get that immediate start following the Canadian Championship. Hopefully, upon his return, he is given a chance to start in the MLS. Given his performance in the Canadian Championship against one of the most dominant teams in the Eastern Conference, he is ready for the MLS. B-

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Defenders

Víctor Cabrera – With a mix of injuries and disciplinary issues limiting his playing time this season, a starter for the past two seasons lost his position to a youngster seizing his opportunity. His play is not convincing and he is not playing to his abilities. C+

Hassoun Camara – After a strong previous season, Camara has been struggling to create and got caught too many times defensively. A player on the decline with and, with the success of Fisher, he will be more of a substitute for the Impact. D+

Laurent Ciman – The general has been inconsistent this season going from his best game one week to his worse game the next. Getting caught out of position and making bad decisions have to lead to prime scoring opportunities for the opposition, he hasn`t been his usual self. Still, his leadership and relationship with Fisher saved his season; they are both becoming better players because of the combination. B-

Chris Duvall – A great pick up for the Impact this season for his cost. He does his job defensively and it was great to see him link up with Dzemaili on a great play. Here’s to hoping to see a more great link up plays like that one. B

Kyle Fisher – A youngster who seized his opportunity. He is a strong, smart and sure thing right now on the roster for the Impact. Hopefully, he can continue to develop his abilities and become a key part of the Impact organization. B+

Daniel Lovitz- He does his job when he is on the pitch. It will be interesting to see how he can do with a few consecutive starts. He has offensive capabilities that have yet to be fully displayed. He is a decent acquisition for the team but not yet impactful enough to be an undeniable asset. C+

Ambroise Oyongo – A creative offensive and defensive player with an acrobatic style, but he was sometimes caught out of position. He was not a player that was spoken about a lot prior to his injury but his loss became extremely present. His injury was a big loss to the defensive unit of the Impact and replacing his playing style has been difficult. B

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Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports

Midfielders

Hernán Bernardello- Lacking a lot of confidence on the pitch, he seems to hesitate too much with and without the ball. He loses the ball in costly places and lacks defensive interventions for what is expected of him. He played a few good games recently which hopefully shows a turnaround in his game. D+

Patrice Bernier – The captain is definitely one of the better players on the roster this season and has made many decisive plays that lead to scoring opportunities. His age is barely showing in his game but with more two game weeks coming up fatigue may be a factor. B+

Marco Donadel – He has become a key player of the Impact unit and when he is absent, it shows. He is able to help the defense when need be and has not been as reckless as in the past. Age being a factor, it will be important to see how long he will be able to keep his play at this caliber. B

Blerim Dzemaili – Since his arrival, we have seen many good things with Dzemaili. His shot is extremely threatening and it would be interesting to see him use it more often. His distribution is also extremely strong but he is not always on the same page as his teammates. It would be nice for him to be stronger defensively and more consistent from game to game and throughout one game. It is important to note that, the five back formation did not seem to favor his playing style at all. A-

Calum Mallace – Mallace got very little playing time this season and with reason. On the field, he seems to have trouble finding his place and makes bad decisions offensively and defensively. What is interesting with this player is, he always seems to have a few tricks up his sleeve like the memorable cross to Porter a few seasons ago or the free kick goal in the friendly against Ottawa. D

Ignacio Piatti – There is no question that he is a threat offensively with 8 goals and 3 assists, luckily his injury came before the break meaning he will likely miss very little time. With his relationship with Dzemaili developing, it will interesting to see what is going to happen with the remainder of this season. A

Ballou Tabla – The youngster has undeniable talent and can do a lot of great things for the club but he is still missing some experience. His lack of control over his temperament and attitude has been causing him some problems resulting in some unnecessary yellows and harsher rulings from referees. With experience and maturity, he will become a stronger player. He also needs to learn to make those passes instead of hanging onto the ball and taking on three defenders. B-

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Forwards

Anthony Jackson-Hamel – The young native player has become a super-sub this season. With important goals bringing the Impact back into games and getting the winning goal, he made a case for himself this season. Struggling in the few starts he did receive, it will be interesting to see what will happen when he returns from international duty. B

Matteo Mancosu – With a decent start to the season he seems to have been struggling since returning from his injury. Getting opportunities to score important goals; he has not been able to put the ball into the net. With the salary he has, he needs to produce much more. C-

Dominic Oduro – He is likely coming off his best season with the Impact, but has struggled a lot this season. His speed sets him up with amazing opportunities but he is unable to seize those opportunities. Hopefully, he can turn the second half of his season around and go back to producing the same type of offensive threat as last season. C-

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Coach

Mauro Biello- Still at the beginning of his career as a coach, he is doing some good things but there is room for improvement. Injuries have been a factor limiting the roster he has had to work with, but his five man back formation was a huge deception. It was unsuccessful, and he kept it in for too long. Another aspect that needs to improve, is his hesitance to make substitutions or making the substitution too late. Overall, he has put the Impact in a decent position but he needs to make improvements in order to get them in the playoffs. C+