Samuel Piette absent from the Canadian team | “The first time in 12 years that I have not been called up”

Twenty-three Canadian players received a call or text message Tuesday to say they were part of the squad that will face Mexico and the United States in friendlies in September.

Among them were CF Montreal defender Joel Waterman and goalie Jonathan Sirois. Their teammate Samuel Piette’s phone, however, remained silent.

The news, in itself, is not the most surprising. Even though, for the past two years, the Quebec midfielder has accompanied the team on its journey to the World Cup and the Copa América, he has watched every game from the sidelines.

With a reduced line-up from 26 to 23 players, the possibility was real that Piette would skip a round. Which did not prevent him from experiencing a “disappointment”.

« J’en parlais avec Alistair Johnston : c’est la première fois en 12 ans que je n’ai pas été appelé. Ça fait bizarre, c’est sûr », a-t-il expliqué, mercredi, après l’entraînement du CF Montréal.

Samuel Piette a dit avoir discuté de la situation avec l’entraîneur-chef Jesse Marsch. Ce dernier voulait, selon lui, composer « avec un groupe réduit » et « voir de nouveaux joueurs ».

À la lumière de cette conversation, Piette a conservé l’impression que l’équipe nationale ne lui tournait pas le dos, en tout cas pas pour de bon.

« Je ne pense pas que tu passes, du jour au lendemain, d’un joueur qui fait partie de presque tous les camps, de toutes les sélections, à rien du tout, a-t-il estimé. Peut-être aussi que ce sera le cas. Mais ce n’est pas le sentiment que j’ai quand je parle avec Jesse Marsch. »

À 29 ans, le capitaine du CF Montréal croit toujours avoir « le niveau » nécessaire pour représenter son pays. « C’est à moi de le garder, dit-il. On verra bien. […] It’s a bit of a disappointment for sure, but I’m not the one making the choices. I control what I can control. And I can only control my performance in training and in matches.”

Unsurprisingly, Jonathan Sirois was much more cheerful, he who, at 23, received the call he wanted for the second time in his young career.

He is especially enthusiastic about the idea of ​​”training every day with players of this quality”. Inevitably, “it raises your standards”, he believes.

“If I can bring back those standards [à Montréal] and pull the group up, I’m going to do it, he continued. I have the chance to go there, to learn and to bring back experience to benefit the whole group.

Quagmire

When Sirois met with reporters Wednesday, he had not yet had the opportunity to discuss with Jesse Marsch the expectations for him. Marsch, he presumes, is aware of the quagmire Montreal is in, and prefers to give the CF Montreal players all the space they need to focus on their last MLS game Saturday before a two-week break.

Laurent Courtois’ men are recovering from a humiliating 5-0 defeat suffered last Saturday, at home to boot, against a club lower in the standings. This opprobrium has raised the anger of the supporters on site.

“I put myself in the shoes of the fans, at the stadium or at home, and it must not have been pleasant to watch,” admitted Samuel Piette.

With a clear head, he and his teammates trained hard on Wednesday. The key words of the week: solidarity and discipline.

In the mindset, in the game plan and in defense. It would be easy to point the finger at everyone, but that’s not how we want to move forward.

Samuel Piette

There are many lessons to be learned from this rout, as “unacceptable” as it may be, he continued. The necessary “adjustments” have therefore been made.

Deploring a “disconnected” or even “chaotic” performance, Jonathan Sirois also called for individual responsibility. “It has to come intrinsically,” he said. “Making a good defensive retreat, tackling at the right time, being aggressive in the right situation, it has to come from each person.”

And to conclude: “Talking has its limits.”

CF Montreal will face FC Cincinnati, which currently occupies second place in the Eastern Conference, on Saturday. CFM, meanwhile, is still stuck in 10^e place, two points from the last place giving access to the playoffs.

Kind words for Choinière

Unsurprisingly, Samuel Piette and Jonathan Sirois were delighted for their compatriot Mathieu Choinière, whose transfer to Switzerland was made official earlier this week. The buzz of the last few months about him – first a trade request, then this departure to Europe – has not affected the team at all, assured Piette. “I know he’s been dreaming about it for a long time,” said the veteran. “He wanted to try something new. It came to fruition, and I just wish him the best.” Sirois, for his part, is losing a long-time teammate, whom he met several years ago in the CF Montreal Academy. “He’s a super hard-working guy,” he said. “It’s sad to see him go, because he’s someone who’s very popular in the locker room, but we’re happy for him. He has a bright future ahead of him, and we’re going to continue to follow him from afar.”