Discussing 2019, Team Canada, and reunions with Mathieu Choinière
Usually, the end of the season is when players finally enjoy some well-deserved time off. Maybe plan a little vacation, or better yet, stay at home and binge watch some Netflix for a few days – you know, the type of thing you can’t always get away with.
That’s not on midfielder Mathieu Choinière’s schedule, though. As soon as the Impact learned its fate on MLS Decision Day, young Choinière hopped onto a plane to join the Canadian U20 team in Bradenton, Florida, for the 2018 Concacaf U20 Championship and an opportunity to qualify for the 2019 FIFA U20 World Cup in Poland.
“I joined them a little late because of the playoff race,” said Mathieu Choinière, now back in Montreal training at Centre Nutrilait. “But I was already familiar with our tactical setup, so I integrated quickly. We had good chemistry, but we didn’t have the tournament we expected to have.”
Despite a record of three wins and two losses over five group games, Canada failed to qualify for the next round, finishing second in a group where only the top team moves on.
Still, Choinière finished the tournament with a goal to his name, and having been named captain for a few games, a first for the midfielder with the Reds.
“I was pretty surprised. Wearing the logo is already very important to me,” added Choinière. “Being the captain for that logo is the proudest I could be at this stage of my international career. I was very honoured to wear that armband.”
Setting the bar high
Choinière signed his first professional contract with the Impact earlier this year and earned his first minutes in the big leagues just a day later, in a Canadian Championship clash against the Vancouver Whitecaps FC at Stade Saputo. The youngster would go on to feature in five games until the end of the season, including a good chunk of minutes on MLS Decision Day, when the Impact needed a goal at Gillette Stadium.
It helps that head coach Rémi Garde has an impressive résumé when it comes to developing youngsters from his years working within the Olympique Lyonnais Academy, one of the best and most productive in Europe.
“We get along really well. He’s a coach that pushes his players, which I like a lot,” explained Choinière. “He asks for our best every day, every training session, and on every little detail. It pushes us to be better at training. The intensity level in our practices is the same as in a game. So, when we do play a game, we know what to expect because we’re in that environment every day.”
Dynamic trio returns
Two more youngsters were added to the squad this offseason: Daniel Kinumbe and Clément Bayiha both signed their first Homegrown contracts with the first team, joining Mathieu Choinière, with whom they developed alongside in the Academy for years.
The three dominated in the Development Academy last season as key players of the Impact Academy’s U19 team.
“I was so proud of them,” added Choinière. “They really deserve it. Those are two guys that are always extremely focused. You saw that they worked and pushed hard to break into the first team. To see them make it…it’s really deserved.”
