Sebrango comes out of short-lived retirement to help revive Impact

When Eduardo Sebrango announced his retirement from soccer earlier in April, he was stuck on 98 career Div. 2 goals. He wasn’t going to make 100.

Stop the presses. Sebrango will be going for goals 99 and 100 — and, for the offensively challenged Montreal Impact, they can’t come soon enough. The 38-year-old’s retirement lasted just a little bit more than two months.

The Impact officially announced Wednesday what has been rumoured since the team returned home from a weekend loss at FC Edmonton — that Sebrango will come out of retirement. The team also confirmed that Sebrango is expected to start in Wednesday night’s game against the Puerto Rico Islanders.

The Impact has won just two of its first 12 games and sit second from the bottom in the NASL standings, ahead of only the Atlanta Silverbacks. And, ahem, the Silverbacks got their lone win over the season against the Impact.

The Impact has scored just 11 times in 12 matches — and just four in 10, if you take away the 5-0 and 2-0 wins earlier this season over FC Edmonton.

On Tuesday, coach Marc Dos Santos resigned.

“Eduardo can definitely help us, but he is not joining us to try to be the saviour of the team on the field,” said Sporting Director and acting Head Coach Nick De Santis in a release. “It will be his presence in the locker room that will be beneficial for everybody. He is a player that knows and has lived the winning culture of this club. He inspires pride that can easily be passed to the others. He has great qualities as a striker and has a wealth of experience that will help our young players in their development.”

“I’m excited to be back with the team and to once again get on the pitch at Saputo Stadium,” said Sebrango. “I feel I still have the energy to play and can help the team win. I felt great during our practice sessions throughout the last week. I will accept my role and give my best to contribute to the club’s success. I also want to help our young forwards progress and help the group through this difficult sequence.”