“The idea is to finish well, and after that we get a big hug. And let everyone go their own way. »
Posted at 5:06 p.m.
If there were still doubts about Victor Wanyama’s future in Montreal after the designated player’s surprise declaration on Tuesday, Wilfried Nancy dispelled them on Thursday.
The head coach was called upon to comment on the revelation of the co-captain of CF Montreal, who had told the media that he was going to “leave at the end of the season”, when his contract expires.
“Of course, at the end of the year, there are emotions,” Nancy said. There is Djordje [Mihailovic] who leaves. There is Victor who will no longer be there too. We live in extraordinary times. […] My love is that in five or ten years, when the players meet again, they will remember certain anecdotes. »
Ismaël Koné did not know that he was experiencing some of his last training sessions with the Kenyan colossus. The Quebecer was also taken by surprise on Tuesday.
PHOTO SARAH MONGEAU-BIRKETT, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Ismael Kone
I will talk about it in detail with him, but for sure if he leaves, it will hurt the team. That would hurt me especially, because he’s a big brother to me. For now, he is really focused on what he has to finish. Later we shall see.
Ismael Kone
Wanyama had a great career in the world of football. He traced his route with Celtic Glasgow and Tottenham, in particular. Wilfried Nancy opted for humility in front of the 31-year-old driver when he took over the reins of the team last year.
“I called him after three or four days to talk to him,” he says. And to tell him the project I had in mind. I told her I’m not [Mauricio] Pochettino, I’m not all the good coaches he’s had. I’m just a little ass here who knows what he wants to do. I presented the project to him. »
“And I learned that you can progress at any age. […] Victor is a good example. He is someone who is having fun at the moment, who has taken it, and who still wants to take it in the matches to come. »
The front row at stake
Fun, CF Montreal hopes to have some in October.
He still has his 34e and last game of the season to be played on Sunday, in Miami. And then on to the playoffs.
Miami confirmed its place in the postseason tournament with its victory on Wednesday. Sunday’s stake is therefore no longer a major one for either team.
But Montreal can still get first place in the East. Which would give him a bye in the first round, played from October 15. But he has to win against the Floridians, and hope Toronto does him a favor by getting a result against the Philadelphia Union.
That said, this advantage has not always been a guarantee of success for the teams that have benefited from it.
Of 22 teams that have taken advantage of the bye since 2011, only two have made it to the final. Both won the MLS Cup.
We put the question to Wilfried Nancy. In the context where this advantage may not really be one, and that the Supporter’s Shield has already been won by LAFC, does he prefer to finish in second place?
“What would you do in my place?” he asks, smirking. We understand that the answer to our question seems obvious to him.
“If we have the pleasure of finishing first, why deprive ourselves of it? “, he ends up saying.
However, his players had not been categorical a few minutes earlier.
“I think it’s always good to reach first place, confirms Koné. […] But there are pros and cons. As a team, it would do us good to still play matches, to be mentally ready. But we want to be first. It’s not given to everyone in MLS. »
Kamal Miller agreed the issue was “tricky” because some have had “difficulty dealing with the first-round bye in the past.”
“But we want to get as many points and wins as possible. »
“I can’t attack them”
Romell Quioto returned injured from his trip with Honduras. An inappropriate thigh challenge for the CFM, which begins its elimination journey shortly. Wilfried Nancy did not say on Thursday if his best striker would be fit for Sunday’s game, or even for the start of the playoffs.
“It’s going well” so far, he said simply.
The coach was, however, asked if he was satisfied with Quioto’s management of playing time by the Honduran national team. It’s not the first time the player has returned from the international window injured. And this time, after 82 minutes against Lionel Messi and Argentina in a friendly match, he played the same game time against Guatemala three days later.
“Of course, I wish they had handled the situation better,” Nancy said. Without a doubt. […] But I can’t attack them. »
“I put myself in Romell’s shoes. He is captain of his national team. It is a pride to represent your country. That he plays 90 minutes against Argentina is completely normal. […] But for him to play the second game… Romell, he could have said no. But he was under pressure to represent his country. »