Lappalainen Commits to CF Montreal

Finnish international wide man Lassi Lappalainen has committed his immediate future to CF Montreal.

The club announced yesterday that they have secured his signature for the next three seasons, with an option for 2025.

Technically he remains on loan from Bologna until the end of this year, but thereafter becomes a CF Montreal player.

In announcing the development CF Montreal Sporting Director Olivier Renard said, “Despite the fact that we were unable count on him as much as we would have liked in 2021, due to injuries, we wanted to keep Lassi with us because we know his qualities and are confident he will return to the best of his abilities and well prepared.

“That we can offer him stability, in a city and club he enjoys is also a key element in this decision.”

Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Lappalainen’s career has flickered brightly at times since he exploded onto the the MLS scene with debut goals in the opening minutes of each half against Philadelphia in 2019.

But injury has curtailed his appearances in Montreal blue. In 81 games (all competitions) played by the club since, Lassi has made only 25 starts, appearing from the bench almost as often (22). His 10 goals make him one of only 13 players to reach double figures for the club in MLS.

He didn’t start any of CF Montreal’s last 22 matches in 2021 and appeared from the bench only 8 times. The numbers don’t stack up, but the club clearly sees something beyond the stats and has used Targeted Allocation Money (TAM) to complete the deal.

Fans will be looking for much more consistency from the ten-times-capped Finn, and much of that will depend on Lappalainen remaining fit and healthy.