The plan with Jaime, what drove Benteke away, and a false rumor about Escobar

Do you ever book important meetings, then realize later that you added them to your calendar even though you already had something scheduled at that exact time?

That's what happened to me early Friday afternoon, when I had a 30-minute interview scheduled with Luca Saputo, but the Olympic game between Finland and Canada was tied 2-2 with a few minutes left in the third period.

What do I do? Do I try to cancel my interview with CF Montréal's senior director of recruitment and sports methodology? Do I try to postpone the meeting?

No! The show must go on, as the English say.

My role on Friday was to chat with Luca Saputo to learn as much as possible about CF Montréal's 2026 lineup, as well as the future of the franchise. So there was no question of putting my desire to watch the end of the game between Canada and Finland ahead of gathering as much information as possible to better understand the organization's sporting and strategic plans. In any case, I had predicted a (hard-fought) 3-2 victory for Canada. I had faith.

All I had to do was make sure I didn't schedule anything for Sunday morning…

Ivan Jaime, his health, his loan, and his future
There is so much information circulating on social media that it can sometimes be difficult to separate fact from fiction.

Is the information circulating about the obligation—not just an option—to buy Ivan Jaime true?

“First of all, know that I'm really counting on Ivan Jaime. I hope and expect him to have a great season. He came back with good intentions from the moment he joined the group. The information coming out of Portugal is accurate. The purchase option becomes automatic if Ivan plays at least 45 minutes in 60% of CF Montréal's games during his loan.” Luca Saputo

Luca Saputo has not confirmed it, but we can also assume that the €5.5 million figure is reliable, since it comes from the same source in Portugal.

Let's do the math together, if you don't mind.

Ivan Jaime was loaned to CF Montréal on August 22, 2025. CF Montréal played seven games with Jaime available in 2025, and has 15 more scheduled between now and June 30. Fourteen of those are in MLS, and one is in the Canadian Championship.

Jaime played at least 45 minutes in three of the seven games he was a member of CF Montréal in 2025.

60% of 22 games (7 + 15) = 13.2.

13.2 – 3 = 10.2.

In short, according to my calculations, Jaime can play 45 minutes or more in 10 of the 15 games between now and the World Cup break without CF Montréal being obliged to buy him for €5.5 million.

Assuming he doesn't start tonight's game in San Diego and doesn't have to face the semi-pro club on CF Montréal's road to the Canadian Championship, Marco Donadel will only have to manage Jaime's playing time in three out of 13 games. That should be fine…

“The amount on paper is not set in stone either. Everything is negotiable and renegotiable. After his loan with us, Jaime will have only one year left on his contract with Porto, unless we automatically activate the option.”

Christian Benteke in Montreal: a story of options in Washington
I first broke the news on X, a few hours after one of the three training sessions held at Marie-Victorin, and it was then picked up by my colleagues (and friends) from the Couscous PiriPiri podcast.

I then asked Luca Saputo to tell us what he could share about Benteke during his press conference a few weeks ago. He kindly confirmed that yes, he had had serious discussions with the Belgian striker, but that internal MLS rules had prevented the Benteke-Montreal marriage from happening.

On Friday, I asked Luca to go a little further, to explain to the most avid fans among us (hi Nilton) what had derailed the Benteke plan.

Christian Benteke, unlike Cristian Espinoza (who moved from San Jose to Nashville), had seen D.C. express interest in activating his option (approximately $4.5 million).

“If D.C. had simply said, ‘We're not exercising the option and we're letting you go, Christian,' we wouldn't have been bound by this specific internal MLS rule. It's important to understand that ultimately, players sign with MLS when they come to North America.” – Luca Saputo Since DC wanted to keep Benteke, but he didn't want to stay, no other MLS team could offer him a Designated Player (DP) contract. They had to stick to the maximum amount that could be offered to a TAM player, which is approximately $1.8 million. It was therefore impossible to make Benteke CF Montréal's second designated player. And he was offered much more than $1.8 million per season in Saudi Arabia. Too bad! Would MLS have acted differently if Inter Miami had been targeting Benteke? Would MLS have said “yes” if Montreal had completed a transaction to obtain Benteke's rights earlier? Unfortunately, we'll never know…

However, two things should be noted: Benteke wanted to come to Montreal, and Montreal was willing to spend several million dollars to get its hands on a player of Benteke's caliber (and age).

Reread those last two sentences slowly. It will prevent some people from coming up with crazy theories on social media…

How is Luca Petrasso doing?
CF Montreal's training camp opened in mid-January, but Luca Petrasso was unable to join the group until February in Florida. Why?

“Luca had to undergo second and then third tests because of a cardiac test result that was not within league standards. Since the league is the one that ultimately signs the contracts, they are demanding, and I understand that.”

Luca Petrasso has since received the green light from the league (and its doctors). He is in good health and available to Marco Donadel.

A false rumor about Olger Escobar
During the winter transfer window a year ago, CF Montréal acquired designated player Giacomo Vrioni, whom New England no longer wanted on its roster.

Vrioni's time in Montréal has been a flop. A big flop!

The Albanian striker arrived in Montreal injured, took longer than expected to recover, and was injured several times during the season. Remember the game in New England where he got injured during warm-ups…

Three months later, CF Montreal acquired (for less than $200,000 GAM) Olger Escobar, who was with New England precisely for that reason.

Many people whispered that CF Montréal management was angry with the Revs over Giacomo Vrioni's health (damage good)… and that the acquisition of Escobar was a bit like a gift to appease CF Montréal.

“These two transfers are completely unrelated. There is no connection between the two situations. We saw Escobar in an MLS Next Pro game and then did our homework. He wasn't playing much and we knew that in Montreal, he would be able to get some playing time.”

In short, let's put this false rumor in the same category as the one linking Louis Munteanu to CF Montréal.

Please note that this article is the first in a series of three or four that I will be writing following my interview with Luca Saputo. In the coming days, we will discuss the rebuilding of the roster, Marco Donadel's role in recruitment, Mahala Opoku and Sunusi Ibrahim, Ivan Losenko, Alessandro Biello, Owen Graham-Roache, the Nutrilait Center, and the future of the franchise in Montreal. Stay tuned.