An Impact spokesperson told MLSsoccer.com as much on Monday, some two days after TSN’s Noel Butler first reported that the club was making a push for the former Chelsea superstar forward.
Drogba’s MLS rights, however, belong to the Chicago Fire through their Discovery List, Impact owner Joey Saputo told Butler on TSN Radio, this Monday night – Chicago Fire COO Atul Khosla confirmed the information on Tuesday morning.
“There was a short period in time where Chicago felt they weren’t interested in the services of Didier Drogba, for whatever reason,” Saputo said. “The league gave other clubs the opportunity to speak to them, so when the league contacted us about Didier, we said ‘Absolutely, we're very interested.’ That’s when the talks started.”
The first contacts between the Impact front office and Drogba’s camp occurred “10 days ago or so,” said Saputo, who personally spoke to Drogba last Friday. But in the meantime, Saputo said, the Fire also told the league that they could, in the end, arrange their three DP slots to make room for Drogba.
“For all intents and purposes, Chicago does have [the rights], being that they are interested, and I know that Chicago are still in discussions with Didier and his camp,” Saputo said. “We’ll just wait and see how it plays out.”
Should Drogba snub the Fire and choose Montreal, MLS Roster Rules and Regulations state that Montreal may offer Chicago “$50,000 in Allocation Money in exchange for the right to sign the player.” According to Saputo, there has yet to be a discussion with the league about Allocation Money changing hands for Drogba.
The Impact went through a similar process in 2012 when they signed World Cup-winning center back Alessandro Nesta, who appeared on the New York Red Bulls’ Discovery List. For Nesta, however, there was only ever one destination, and that was Montreal. Drogba is a more sought-after property.
Over his conversations with Drogba’s camp, Saputo has become convinced that the former Ivory Coast international would be “an instant success” in his market.
“[Drogba] didn’t hide the fact that Montreal would be a perfect fit for him,” Saputo said. “The conversation with Didier was done completely in French, which was comforting for him. He asked about the city, he asked about the schooling and the kids and whatnot, which is something that is very important to him.
“The ball’s in his court now,” Saputo continued. “I know that Chicago is still pursuing him – rightly so. We just hope that we come out on top. But after all is said and done, I could walk away from this knowing that if Didier does not come to MLS or Didier does not come to Montreal and decides to go to Chicago, I think we’ve left everything on the table.”
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