Hot Off the Press: Saphir Taider Reportedly Signs Three Year Contract with Montreal

The rumour of Saphir Taider joining the Impact has been around since it was revealed that Dzemaili wanted to leave. The signing is imminent and while the Impact has not officially announced the signing of the Algerian international midfielder, many reliable sources have confirmed it. Taider is a great addition and can do a lot for the Impact.

While many are referring to Taider as Dzemaili replacement, they are not exactly the same type of players. Taider can contribute offensively just as much as he can defensively which is a important skill for a central midfielder. Taider is also at the turning point of his career, being only 25 he still has a lot of playing left in his career and could become an Algerian superstar.

On the offensive, he is great at keeping possession and creating space for himself; something Impacts fans got used to seeing with Bernier. Another aspect of his offensive game is his long range shots/goals. A majority of Taider’s goals come from long range precise shots. He is not as much of an offensive threat as Dzemaili was but he is a solid box to box player. Defensively, he is strong on his feet and in his tackles, he likes to time his tackles to create interesting counter attacks. This also becomes his issue as he often gets caught with reckless challenges; with the referees in the MLS this may become a costly issue.

Photo by Mario Carlini / Iguana Press/Getty Images

With a youthful player full of promise like Taider, it is a good move for the Impact to go get him as someone they could build a lineup with. Players like Drogba affect the lineup greatly while they are here but because they are at the end of their career you cannot build a future with them. Taider, while he is only here for three years right now, is still in his prime and can be included in the Impact five year plan.

While Taider isn’t the superhero that will save the day and fix all of the Impact issues since they still have many missing links in their lineup, he is a great start.