Ching relents, will report to Montreal

He has yet to manage his club through an MLS game, but Montreal Impact coach Jesse Marsch earned his first major “W” on Thursday. In an interview with the Houston Chronicle (CLICK), striker Brian Ching said he will back down on his retirement threat and report to the Montreal Impact’s training camp. This will either give the Impact the flexibility to use Ching… or trade him. Ching was taken by the Impact with the club’s first overall pick in the expansion draft, even though Ching had warned Marsch that he would rather retire than report to Montreal. The Impact, strangely, was criticized on many fronts for taking Ching, when all the club did was select a veteran player who was left unprotected. Ching scored 76 of his 77 career MLS goals for the San Jose Earthquakes-Houston Dynamo franchise, and wanted to play in Texas when the club opens BBVA Compass Stadium May 12. The opponent that day will be D.C. United, which should have two former Dynamo greats — both of them Canadian — on the trip. Reigning MVP Dwayne De Rosario (provided he and DCU work out a deal) and goalkeeping coach Pat Onstad will be there for the opener. But Ching has backed down on his threat. Now he’s an asset that Marsch and the Impact front office can use or deal. Marsch’s gamble, to ignore Ching’s threat and take what the Dynamo had put in the shop window, has paid off. RELATED: Impact players model team’s new MLS threads (CLICK) Expansion Draft: Impact ignores Ching’s retirement threat (CLICK)