SEASON PREVIEW: Can busy offseason help CF Montréal compete after disastrous 2025?
It’s déjà vù for CF Montréal, who are hoping that their fifth coach of this decade, Marco Donadel, can be the one who pushes the club back up the table in 2026.
Having been first hired as an interim head coach following the firing of Laurent Courtois last March, Donadel got the chance to stamp out his identity last year, impressing enough to earn a permanent job, so it’ll be interesting to see how he handles having had a full preseason under his belt.
It was another tough season for Montréal, who finished third-last in all of MLS in 2025, so the pressure will be on Donadel to at least push his team back up the table - this is a team that did make the playoffs as an eighth seed in 2024; it must be remembered.
No doubt, though, that the task won’t be easy to achieve. In a league where there seems to be more and more big money signings, Montréal have continued to scour the bargain bin for talent, and while they’ve found some intriguing players there over the years, there are questions whether or not they’ve found enough players to compete in a rapidly-growing league.
Yet, as other clubs have shown, you don’t need the biggest payrolls to compete in MLS, so Montréal remains steadfast in their approach, one that they’ll hope can start to bear fruit in 2026 and going forward.
2025 record:
MLS: 8W-10D-18L (28 PTS), Missed playoffs
Canadian Championship: Quarter-finals
Leagues Cup: Group stage
2026 Expectations:
After a disastrous 2025 campaign on all fronts, 2026 will be all about steady improvement for Donadel.
With only two competitions to manage, their goals will be pretty straightforward, as they’ll want to reach the playoffs and win the Canadian Championship for the first time since 2021.
They’ve certainly got the squad to be competitive, as they’ve bolstered their ranks with some players who bring good MLS experience to the table, even if they lack the difference makers that some of the other teams in the league might have at their disposal.
Yet, that gives an idea of what Donadel’s goal will be this year - he’ll hope that through a clear tactical identity and a strong mentality, Montréal will be able to punch above their weight. That’s easier said than done, of course, but it’s not totally out of the realm of possibility.
Until they invest in those difference-makers, that’ll be the identity that they’ll need to live and die by, so they’ll hope to embrace it sooner rather than later. And hey, who knows, maybe a strong start to the year could open the door for them to invest in the sort of players they once used to attract to the city, showing the importance of hitting the ground running this season.
How will they play?
As expected, Montréal’s big strength in 2025 was their collective approach, as they were actually middle of the pack in terms of Expected Goals for and against, even if their actual goals for and against numbers weren’t that great.
What that shows, though, is the challenge they face to win games, as they were often let down by individual errors at both ends of the pitch.
Offensively, they struggled to find a source of goals not named Prince Owusu, who led the team with 17 goals across all competitions, and their next best attacker, Dante Sealy, is no longer with the club after scoring nine goals (the next best goalscorer still with the club is midfielder Victor Loturi, who had two goals last year).
Defensively, meanwhile, they conceded 60 goals, which was fifth-worst in the league, as they struggled to keep the ball out of their net, despite having decent pressing and shot suppression numbers.
Therefore, the challenge will be simple for Donadel, and that’ll be to become more solid defensively, while finding a way to get more goals out of the team. His structure, which was usually a 4-2-3-1, clearly was solid enough, hence the decent underlying numbers, but he’ll want to further find the cohesion required to avoid the issues that plagued them at both ends of the field.
Because of that, don’t be surprised if they commit to a lower-event, more defensive approach, one that allows them to be more solid at the back, while still opening the door for Owusu and other attackers to thrive in transition. They’ll want to use the ball, no doubt (they averaged 48% possession last year), but that won’t matter if they’re unable to turn it into goals and protect their own net, showing that Donadel will have to find a balance between all phases of play to make this side more competitive.
Star player: Prince Owusu
After a shock trade from rivals Toronto FC, Prince Owusu ended up being a sneaky good acquisition for Montréal, as he scored 17 goals in 40 appearances across all competitions (including 13 in MLS play) - he had 12 goals in 45 appearances for TFC during his time there, for context.
Because of that, look for the 29-year-old to build off that in his second season with the club, as he gives the team the sort of difference-maker they’ll need to settle games.
If anything, the big challenge for Montréal will be to provide Owusu with the service he’ll need to score goals, as he showed that he can put the ball in the back of the net with the right opportunities. Of course, the big worry will be that last season was a bit of a flash in the pan (he did rely decently on penalties), which is a valid concern, but Montréal will be hoping it was instead a sign of what he can do in the right environment.
Underrated contributor: Luca Petrasso
Another former Toronto FC player, Petrasso ended up being a surprise revelation in his first season in Montréal, featuring in every game for the club in 2025. He was strong in those minutes, too, and even showed some offensive upside, scoring two goals and adding five assists in 39 appearances.
Because of that, it’s expected that he has a big role to play again at left back this season. He really took a big step forward under Donadel at that position, having sometimes looked awkward under Courtois, who played him as a centre back to start the year.
Armed with an excellent left foot, he is the exact sort of player that could help provide the service that Owusu will need to shine, so Montréal will look to make sure that he’s very involved in the attack - even if they’ll push him to take a big step forward defensively, too.
Breakout candidate: Olger Escobar
For a young Montréal team, you could name half the roster here, but Olger Escobar is one especially interesting player to watch.
Canadian fans will know him well - he was excellent at last summer’s Gold Cup as an 18-year-old for Guatemala - so it’ll be hoped that he can build on the one goal and one assist he had for Montréal after his acquisition from the New England Revolution.
For a team looking for more offence, they’ll certainly offer him minutes if he can show that he can contribute right away, so look for him to try and hit the ground running early. Perhaps, there can be a world where he can pair nicely with someone like Iván Jaime underneath Owusu, giving Montréal the sort of creative play they lacked at times (no one had more than five assists across all competitions last year).
Given Montréal’s lack of bigger-name players, a breakout season from a player like Escobar will go a long way towards helping this team exceed expectations.
Biggest addition: Dagur Dan Thórhallsson
A big theme among Montréal’s acquisitions this offseason is MLS experience, and Thórhallsson certainly brings that to the table, as he racked up over 100 appearances across three seasons with Orlando City.
Able to play as both a midfielder and full back, he should immediately slot into this Montréal team and bring them some balance, as he can make things happen on both sides of the ball.
Given Montréal’s quest to be better in both boxes, a versatile player like Thórhallsson should be a welcome addition for Donadel, as he gives Montréal valuable tactical flexibility. For a team that will be more about the collective than the individuals, players like that can go a long way towards improving their squad.
What is a good season?
If Montréal makes the playoffs and wins the Canadian Championship.
In terms of the playoffs, that would mark the fourth time in seven seasons that they make the postseason, which is not bad at all considering their budget, while winning a trophy for the first time since 2021 would also go a long way towards improving morale.
Despite their lack of top-end talent, this team has actually done a pretty good job of improving their depth, which should allow them to at least be competitive in every match that they play, so they’ll certainly give themselves every chance at being able to complete those goals.
What is a bad season?
If they stay stuck in neutral. While they should be competitive in every game, there are genuine worries that Montréal won’t have the difference makers to win important matches, and that could leave them on track to have another similarly frustrating season in 2026.
That would be quite tough to stomach, and would do little to quiet the moans that the club hasn’t invested enough into top-end talent, despite doing quite well to sell players on in recent years.
Yet, that’s the challenge of employing a ‘Moneyball’ style operation the way Montréal has. Either you succeed and look like shrewd geniuses, or you risk getting left behind in a world where most teams seem to combine hefty investment with smart pickups.
