2023 CF Montreal preview
No Nancy, no problem?
2022 record: 20W 5D 9L +13GD 65Pts (2nd in East)
Playoffs: Beat Orlando in first round, lost to NYCFC in Conference semi-finals
Notable additions: DF George Campbell, DF Aaron Herrera, MF Ilias Iliadis, FW Jules-Anthony Vilsaint, Coach Hernán Losada
Notable subtractions: MF Djordje Mihailovic, DF Karifa Yao, Bjørn Maars Johnsen, DF Alistair Johnston, MF Ismaël Koné, FW Joaquín Torres, Coach Wilfred Nancy
2022 NextPro: Did not participate
2023 Elevator Pitch: They won the fans heart back in 2022, but the off-season has been hard. harder than it needed to be with the move away from Nancy. How can you follow a dream year with a new coach, weaker line-up and drama seemingly always just below the surface?
Why it will go right?
Yes, they’ve lost some significant names, but this is still a team that ended with 65 points in 2022 — that would have been good enough for a Shield in a few seasons. There are good players still around.
Particularly at the back. They lose very little, if anything, with Alistair Johnston leaving and Aaron Herrera coming in. You have a motivated Kamal Miller looking for a transfer to Europe, Rudy Camacho and Joel Waterman providing consistency in the line-up and Victor Wanyma sitting in front of the line to keep it all nice and tidy.
Defensively they look like they are still among the best teams in the league. That will take you a long way.
Why it will go wrong?
But, will it take you all the way? That’s the question. As I’ve pointed out in other previews and pretty much everywhere that I’ve had the opportunity to do so, MLS is not a league where the best defensive teams typically win the championship.
Only once — the 2000 Wizard — has a defence first team been crowned champion. Good defensive teams have won, but only those who were also among the best attacks in the league.
There is where Montreal has questions. Who is going to score?
Mason Toye? To a point, but do you really think he’s a guy that can drive you to a title? Not sure he’s shown that he’s that. Kei Kamara? Is he even going to be there?
Someone yet to arrive? That doesn’t seem likely, but that might be the only answer that takes them over the top.
And all this is even before we get into the question of whether Hernán Losada is going to mess everything up. He didn’t exactly set the league on fire in DC and a lot of people there were happy to see his backside when he was fired.
Key player
Victor Wanyma.
A criminally underrated player that has been a solid soldier for this club for a while now. He is the glue that makes Montreal hard to beat.
Unsung player
Joel Waterman.
He’s become a solid and reliable contributor since joining The Team That Used To Be Called The Impact. This could be the year that he becomes a standout player.
If Miller leaves to Europe in the summer — as he has publicly said that he wants to do — then he might have to for Montreal to remain a top team in the East.
The Ceiling
The defence will keep them near the top, but the loss of the attacking pieces — particularly Djordje Mihailovic — likely means another 60+ point season is a big ask. Still, this is a team that could be top four in the East and push the top teams in the playoffs.
The Floor
If the goal scoring struggles to materialize — and that’s a real possibility — they will likely slump down the standings to that mushy middle around 6-7.
The rest of the MLS preview will be published tomorrow for Patreon and Substack paid subscribers only