Montreal Impact’s front office decided they need a fresh approach in their hunt to claim MLS Eastern Conference playoff spot this season. The team announced on Thursday that they have fired head coach Remi Garde and replaced him with Wilmer Cabrera.
Garde’s firing comes after Impact only managed to win one out of their eight games. He will leave Montreal with 24-29-8 record.
Cabrera, on the other hand, joins Impact after he recently parted ways with Houston Dynamo. The 51-year-old Colombian spent three and a half years with Dynamo, leading them to U.S. Open Cup win in 2018.
“Because I have so much respect for Remi as a person and as a professional, it was a very difficult decision to make and it was well thought, but our latest series of failures in the past couple of months and the way the team acts on the field led to that change,” said Impact president and CEO Kevin Gilmore in a statement. “We hope to bring back confidence to this group of players for the last stretch of the season, to get a playoff spot and to perform in the Canadian Championship final.”
Remi Garde joined Montreal Impact in November 2017, after he previously served as a manager with Ligue 1 powerhouse Lyon and Premier League side Aston Villa. Garde had a semi-successful first season with Impact, missing out on the playoffs on the last day of the season.
