“We do not want to be close to the playoffs, we want to be in the playoffs. We want to reach our season-ticket subscription objective. We do not want to experience a dip in attendance like we had in our first game at Saputo Stadium. We do not want to leave points on the pitch by allowing so many late-game goals.”

And, on Wednesday, the team announced that it would be dropping ticket prices for the 2013 season, something owner Joey Saputo hinted at on Twitter the day before. Tickets have dropped 15 per cent on average, while season-ticket holders will get what the Impact is calling a “10 per cent rebate” on 2012 packages.

“A lot of it depends on the stadium because we’re building a stadium in San Jose,” San Jose Eartquakes President Dave Kaval explained. “The stadium here (in Montreal) has been renovated recently so I wanted to sit down with Joey Saputo and with all the team here and discuss with them what they built. There are lessons here for us and our design as we move forward with our construction and so that’s the key reason.”

Nesta was officially unveiled as an Impact player Friday, in a press conference that was aired live on RDS. But, without a working knowledge of the Italian language, the viewers would have to be happy to admire the legendary central defender in an Impact polo shirt, as he doesn’t speak English or French well enough to communicate to the Canadian media.

And that’s the thing, throughout this whole process, the Impact’s front office has worked in a very different way than we’d normally see in MLS. Teams usually don’t publicly declare their interest in players or confirm that contract offers have been made.

Team president Joey Saputo shared his displeasure with the evening’s entertainment, tweeting a short and far from sweet “Absolute disgrace, enough said,” at the conclusion of play.

On Tuesday, the club officially made the Ouimette, 19, the second Quebecer to make the MLS squad, and the first player to graduate from the Academy to MLS.

“I am very pleased to confirm that we will be playing our first game at Saputo Stadium on June 16th, as planned,” he declared. “At the outset of the work in October, 2011, we explained that our timetable was very tight but that we only had one scenario — to play here on the 16th of June.

Marco Di Vaio, the Montreal Impact’s first Designated Player, has been in town for less than 24 hours. But if the reception he received when he emerged from the secure area of Dorval’s Pierre Elliot Trudeau Airport Sunday night and the plaudits that were tossed his way at Monday afternoon’s press introduction are any indication, he might just be able to cross the St. Lawrence River on foot in the summertime.

After Saturday's 2-0 MLS-opening loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps at B.C. Place, Montreal coach Jesse Marsch declared that one game does not a season make.