shawn_strat Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 THE IMPACT WILL FACE NEW YORK RED BULLS AT SAPUTO STADIUM PRESS RELEASE: FEBRUARY 21, 2011 MONTREAL – The Montreal Impact will face Major League Soccer (MLS) club New York Red Bulls at Saputo Stadium, in a friendly on Wednesday, May 11, at 7:30pm. With Montreal set to join Major League Soccer in 2012, this will provide soccer fans around the province with a great opportunity to get an early taste of MLS action. Some well-known faces will take part in this match, including a couple of former FC Barcelona members, French forward Thierry Henry and Mexican defender Rafa Marquez, as well as Canadian goalkeeper Greg Sutton, who played for the Impact from 2001 to 2006. “We are very excited to welcome the New York Red Bulls and bring an MLS team to Montreal,” declared Impact president Joey Saputo. “We will have the chance to face one of the original members of MLS, a club that has proved over the years to be a top class organization. This match promises to be a great experience for our fans. As we prepare our club for MLS in 2012, we would like to thank the Red Bulls organization for this opportunity.” “I am looking forward to come to Montreal later this year with my teammates to play against the Impact,” said Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry. “I know that the fans in Montreal are devoted to their team and are excited to join MLS in 2012. It should be a great atmosphere at Saputo Stadium.” “We are excited to play Montreal as they build momentum for joining Major League Soccer next year," said Red Bull New York General Manager and Sporting Director Erik Soler. "Montreal is truly a cosmopolitan city with a great soccer fanbase and we are thrilled to help promote the Impact with this match in May." The Red Bulls are entering their 2011 MLS campaign coming off a season which saw them win the Eastern Conference regular season title, completing one of the biggest turnarounds in MLS history. Led by MLS Coach of the Year finalist Hans Backe, the Red Bulls boast international stars Henry and Marquez, MLS Newcomer of the Year finalist Joel Lindpere and recent U.S. Men’s National Team debutants Juan Agudelo and Tim Ream. The Red Bulls play in Red Bull Arena, the premium soccer facility in North America. The ticket for this match is included in the Montreal Impact 2011 18-game season ticket package. Season tickets are currently available through the Impact’s website (impactmontreal.com) and through the club’s ticket office, by calling 514-328-3668. All 2011 season ticket holders will automatically be granted priority on their seats for Major League Soccer (MLS) in 2012. Individual tickets for the New York Red Bulls game will go on sale on Thursday, March 10, at 10 am, through Admission (514-790-1245 / admission.com) or at the ticketing office of Saputo Stadium. Ticket prices will range between $20 and $50 (plus taxes). Season ticket holders will also have priority to buy additional tickets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue and White Army Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 Interesting. Montreal playing RBNY to help with the Impact's push into MLS? I wonder how much Saputo will be paying them to play a mid-season friendly. From the wording, it sounds like the match contract obliges Henry, Marquez and Sutton to all play. The timing is rather odd: one week prior to the Voyageurs Cup final first-leg. And Montreal will play a league match at home against Carolina between those matches. Major fixture congestion for Montreal. Is it worth it? Or have Montreal already thrown in the V-Cup towel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawn_strat Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 It's seven days after their previous game. I have a feeling that a lot of Academy players will play anyways. Many Impact fans want the V-Cup this year much more than the NASL title (which is close to meaningless) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Razcle Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 Mid-season friendlies are a stupid idea in my opinion. However good on Montreal for getting the ****e-bulls to agree to this and hope the event helps increase the excitement of 1st division soccer for 2012. I would be pretty happy if NY was playing TFC the following Saturday (tired). Let me check the schedule. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 yeah well schedule sucks. so unless they play a majority of academy guys, our v-cup contention is in serious jeopardy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MastaK Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 If Three or four days is more than enough to recover from a match, and considering we won't be playing our #1 team for 90 minutes in a friendly match and also probably not in the following league match, and also considering it will only be the first month of our season, our guys should be in shape... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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