Briand snubs Impact, refuses to sign deal

The Montreal Impact’s tentative deal to sign French striker Jimmy Briand fell through on Thursday.

“French striker Jimmy Briand will not join the Montreal Impact as it was originally planned,” the Impact said in a news release about the former member of French Ligue 1 club Guingamp. “Briand did not want to sign the MLS contract according to the terms negotiated and accepted by himself and his agent. Important additional requests by the Briand side at the last minute made the signing fall through. The Impact now directs its efforts toward other players to continue to improve the squad before the end of the international transfer window. A new signing should be announced in the coming days.”

On Monday, the Impact tweeted that Briand, who turns 33 on Aug. 2, will be in Montreal this week and that it was “only a matter of time” before he becomes an Impact player.

On Wednesday, the Impact picked up an international roster spot (for the expected signing of Briand) from the San Jose Earthquakes for the 2018 season in exchange for $100,000 in general allocation money.

Guingamp announced his departure on Sunday, saying Briand asked to leave.

“We thank our former captain for his three seasons with the club and wish him the same success in Montreal as his illustrious predecessor Didier Drogba,” a team statement said.

Former Chelsea and Ivory Coast star Drogba played for the Impact in 2015 and 2016.

The Impact, with only 28 goals in 22 games, were seeking a proven scorer to go with attacking midfielders Ignacio Piatti, Alejandro Silva and Saphir Taider.