Pull the tarp away, they’re ready to go.
The natural grass field was finally open for business, this Tuesday morning at the Montreal Impact training centre. The players were thus able to train on their own natural field after several sessions on artificial turf.
Coincidence or not, there were plenty of smiles as the Eastern Conference leaders took to the training field.
“It’s definitely a lot better,” said midfielder Kyle Bekker. “It’s nice. Everyone’s out here, and you can see that everyone’s happy and laughing. Getting off the turf is important. It’s harder for the body, so to get back on the grass is really good.”
Head coach Mauro Biello also noticed how positive the atmosphere was within his group of players, who gave a warm welcome to two FC Montreal youngsters at the beginning of the session.
Ballou Jean-Yves Tabla and David Choinière, who both make their professional debuts last Saturday in a 2-1 loss to Toronto FC II, received a round of applause from their first-team colleagues.
“Ballou also scored a fine goal,” said team captain Patrice Bernier. “Congratulations were in order. The young players are pushing. We congratulate them for this start and hope that they get more starts, even later with the first team.”
The two youngsters’ timing was impeccable: they were able to get advice from forward Didier Drogba on this windy Tuesday morning.
“It’s a nice experience when they come up,” said Mauro Biello. “We knew they would work hard and learn next to Drogba. At the same time, this experience can help them grow. You don’t get to train in the same team as Didier Drogba every day. You could see, whenever play stopped, that both kids got advice from Didier. Things like that can make us grow as a club.”
