CF Montréal opens first training camp under head coach Marco Donadel

By Canadian Press on January 12, 2026.

MONTREAL — CF Montréal’s 2025 season went down as the worst in the club’s 33-year history.

The team finished with just 28 points and had the worst home record in Major League Soccer. Upper management sent a letter midway through the season apologizing to fans and committing to rebuild.

Now, as the 2026 training camp is in full swing, head coach Marco Donadel has reoriented his focus on improving the group both on and off the field and hammering home his philosophies.

“Every team has to be open to change and add something new each year,” said Donadel, who is entering his first season as Montreal’s permanent head coach after taking over last year on an interim basis following the dismissal of Laurent Courtois. “We know what we need tactically and in the locker room.

“Last year got 28 points, this year we want to get 20 more.”

BALANCING EXPERIENCE WITH YOUTH

Montreal wasted no time getting active on the transfer market this season, adding defenders Brayan Vera and Dangur Thorhallsson, midfielder Ivan Losenko and striker Daniel Rois.

Donadel said there could be more on the way.

“It feels like we have a group that’s a bit more mature and experienced,” said team captain Samuel Piette, who led the youngest team in MLS last season with an average age of 23.7. “It’s going to help with some of the more complicated moments in games and will help us have more of a united team spirit.”

Donadel was involved in the recruitment of players this off-season, actively scouting out targets who expressed a desire to play in Montreal.

“(Donadel) was very interested; he called me a couple of times … I feel like he sold it really well,” said Thorhallsson. “I’m a player who can play all over the field, and I’m that kind of player.”

Finding squad players with MLS experience was important for the club, which suffered from a lack of depth in 2025. Whether through injuries or a lack of suitable players on the bench, Montreal was unable to rotate the squad much, leading to tired legs and a drop in level.

“I’m a really dynamic player, and this is a really dynamic system, it’s all over the place and many players change positions,” said Thorhallsson. “Last year I played nine positions if I’m not mistaken and that’s what the coach likes and I think I could thrive in this system.”

BUILDING ON A FOUNDATION

Donadel took the role of interim head coach following a disastrous start, during which they claimed a single point from their first six games. For the rest of the season, Donadel’s main priority was to establish a baseline and grow from there.

Now that he’s had a full off-season to prepare, he will be looking to expand on the finer points of his tactics.

“The tactics are pretty similar, so now that we know the base, we can work on the details. This is even more important because we had many good chances where we missed the last pass,” said forward Prince Owusu. “We know we can score, but first it’s important to get the connection with all the players, especially for me as a striker.”

As the focal point of the attack, Owusu had a very difficult start to the 2025 season. However, he was one of the first to fully integrate himself into Donadel’s tactics and turned the 2025 season into the best of his career.

He finished as the club’s top scorer with 13 goals and five assists and its most valuable player, in addition to winning his first senior caps for Ghana.

Later this week, Montreal will travel to Marbella, Spain, for a three-week camp before wrapping up its pre-season duties in Florida. The club will play five friendlies in total, two in Marbella and three in Florida.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 12, 2026.

Elias Grigoriadis, The Canadian Press