![\"President](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2290117567-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\nChilean international Alexis S\u00e1nchez was introduced as CF Montreal\u2019s newest designated player Tuesday. The 37-year-old attacker joins MLS during a critical moment in the league\u2019s history. After the 2026 World Cup, MLS hopes to attract new fans and media partners.<\/p>\n
Additionally, the league will shift to a summer-to-spring calendar starting in July 2027. Sweeping changes to the strict squad-building restrictions are expected to take place, too, in an effort to allow MLS teams to push the envelope when it comes to international recruitment.<\/p>\n
S\u00e1nchez, though, represents a more traditional MLS signing, one that does little to raise the profile of America\u2019s top flight. After a brief stint with Sevilla last season, in which he scored four goals and added two assists in 28 La Liga appearances, S\u00e1nchez joins a Montreal side that sits at the bottom of the table and is winless in its past five matches.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s mainly a footballing decision,\u201d said Luca Saputo, CF Montreal\u2019s managing director of recruitment and sporting methodology. \u201cWe have a lot of young players here, including many South American players, who can learn a great deal from a player like Alexis. Whenever we make a decision, the first consideration is always what he can bring on the field. But obviously, with a player of Alexis\u2019 stature, he brings a lot off the field too. So it ended up being a perfect fit.\u201d<\/p>\n
News broke last week that Montreal had plucked S\u00e1nchez from European football, and not Inter Miami, where S\u00e1nchez would have been reunited with Lionel Messi, his former Barcelona teammate. Instead of the sun and Latino-influenced culture of South Florida, S\u00e1nchez will play in a cold-weather MLS market best known for its hockey heritage.<\/p>\n
Still, \u201cEl Ni\u00f1o Maravilla\u201d (The Wonder Boy), is eager to show the football world that one\u2019s surroundings shouldn\u2019t temper one\u2019s motivations. Despite an impressive club career that includes time with Barcelona, Arsenal, Manchester United, Inter Milan and Marseille, S\u00e1nchez is not a byproduct of an avant-garde recruitment strategy by Montreal.<\/p>\n
His signing resembles that of James Rodr\u00edguez in February. The 35-year-old captain of Colombia joined Minnesota United but only managed to play in six games. Montreal will hope to distance itself from that type of outcome.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n President and CEO of CF Montr\u00e9al Gabriel Gervais presents Alexis S\u00e1nchez with his jersey in Montreal. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis \/ MLS via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is something new,\u201d S\u00e1nchez said about signing for Montreal. \u201cIt\u2019s a club that wants to grow, a city that wants to grow. They told me hockey is very big here too, so I hope football can become the same. That passion, people coming to the stadium, enjoying it with family. And I can bring some joy to the people, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Joy is one way to describe S\u00e1nchez\u2019s contributions to the sport. He debuted in Chile\u2019s first division as a teenager and regularly performed at a high level in South America\u2019s premier cup competitions. With a boyish smile, an intense way of playing and a knack for scoring highlight-worthy goals, S\u00e1nchez became a respected professional and a title-winner in European club football.<\/p>\n
\u201cI trust in my ability as a player,\u201d S\u00e1nchez said confidently, adding that at Sevilla he could run more than the side\u2019s 22-year-old players. \u201cI was born playing football. I grew up playing football. It\u2019s a talent God gave me, and I find it easy to do. It comes easy for me. Football isn\u2019t just about running; it\u2019s about thinking, understanding the rhythms of the game. And I think I\u2019ll keep playing because it comes easily to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
MLS poses a different challenge. It\u2019s a physically demanding league that has humbled its fair share of world-class players. Moreover, MLS teams still lack the type of squad depth elite players are accustomed to. S\u00e1nchez, like many stars before him, must accept his reality while elevating the play of his teammates. S\u00e1nchez, at least on Tuesday, said all the right things. He wants to mentor Montreal\u2019s young players, win titles and set a new professional standard at the club.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll demand more from (the younger players),\u201d S\u00e1nchez said. \u201cI want the kids to learn because I know they love football. I think my role in recent years has been to be professional, so the young players can learn from me, showing that the team has heart and grit, and plays good football.\u201d<\/p>\n
S\u00e1nchez joins other recognizable players who see MLS as more than an over-30 men\u2019s league with nice stadiums. Messi is the league\u2019s unicorn, a greatest-ever level player who has not lowered his standards since arriving three years ago. Even after his playing days are over, Messi\u2019s willingness to come to MLS, while continuing to produce heroics for his country on the international stage, could motivate other big names to do the same.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very competitive by nature,\u201d said S\u00e1nchez. \u201cSevilla wanted me for one more year, but I made the decision that it was time to end my European chapter and come here to Montreal.<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw that all the world-class players were coming here. I was watching Messi, (Luis) Su\u00e1rez, (Robert) Lewandowski and I said, \u2018Why not come and give myself the chance to play here with the best players in the world?\u2019 To compete, which is what I love.\u201d<\/p>\n
S\u00e1nchez has joined first-team training and appeared to target Saturday\u2019s game against LA Galaxy as an opportunity to connect with the city\u2019s growing population of Chilean expats. The back-to-back Copa Am\u00e9rica titles that Chile won in 2015 and 2016 established S\u00e1nchez as an all-time great for his national team.<\/p>\n
When asked Tuesday about the influence he has had on Chilean football, particularly on Chilean children, S\u00e1nchez flashed his trademark smile and answered with the superstar charisma that has long defined him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very loved back home by the kids, and by the grandmothers, too. I\u2019m very happy about that.\u201d<\/p>\n
But can he capture the hearts and minds of Montrealers?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Chilean international Alexis S\u00e1nchez was introduced as CF Montreal\u2019s newest designated player Tuesday. The 37-year-old attacker joins MLS…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":173374,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[9010,7312,359,50,205],"class_list":["post-173373","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-montreal","tag-club-de-foot-montreal","tag-inter-miami-cf","tag-mls","tag-montreal","tag-soccer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173373","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=173373"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173373\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/173374"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=173373"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=173373"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=173373"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}