Didier Drogba brings the star power that the Impact desperately needed, writes Nick Sabetti.
MONTREAL— The Montreal Impact have pulled off the biggest signing in franchise history with the capture of former Chelsea and Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba for—according to ESPN—an 18-month deal worth in excess of $4.5 million.
There’s no question that the Impact, a club which has endured dwindling ticket sales over the last few seasons, needed a signing of this magnitude to improve its numbers at the gate and invigorate its standing in the fickle sporting landscape of Montreal.
In February, with season ticket sales having reached levels as low as when the Impact competed in the North American Soccer League, club president Joey Saputo bemoaned the lack of palpable excitement for his club, famously stating that “the buzz is not there.