Donny Toia Joins Montreal Impact Through Dispersal Draft

Donny Toia is the newest member of the Montreal Impact. The 22-year-old defender joined the club through the MLS Dispersal Draft, which took place Wednesday, November 19th. He was the 4th overall selection.

The draft was scheduled because of Chivas USA ceasing operations until the 2016 season, to undergo a complete rebrand.

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Impact manager Frank Klopas had this to say about the team’s acquisition;

"“We’re very happy to have selected Donny because he’s the player we wanted. He is an athletic young guy that has already played a lot of games in MLS. He’s a good defender with experience that you don’t usually get with a player of his age.”"

Toia was signed by Chivas before the start of last season. He made 27 appearances with the club (24 starts) and was one of their most dependable players. In fact, he was third on their team in minutes played, with 2, 240.

Prior to his time with Chivas, he was a member of the Real Salt Lake youth system and was even signed to a professional contract by them in 2011. However, he never saw any playing time and was released before the start of the 2012 campaign.

After his time in Utah, Toia featured with his hometown FC Tuscon, of the USL Premier Development League. The following year, he moved up to the USL Pro league (many consider this one level below MLS) and made his pro debut with Phoenix FC.

He has also represented the United States on the international stage, receiving caps from both the U-18 and U-20 teams.

Toia is listed as a left-back on his Transfermarkt profile, which is intriguing, as the Impact already have a proven left-back in Krzysztof Krol on their roster.

With the expansion draft coming up and Montreal only being able to protect eleven players, it will be interesting to see whether they choose to protect Krol or Toia.

Personally, I would like to see what Toia can do for the Impact. Krol was inconsistent at times last year and sometimes his defensive was a bit suspect.

Toia is younger and sound defensively. I really hope we get to see him in action come March.

The first overall selection in the Dispersal Draft was goalkeeper Dan Kennedy, who went to F.C. Dallas. Montreal had the 6th overall pick, but two teams ahead of them passed, so Toia was officially the 4th overall pick. A total of seven players were selected.

The Impact also had a second round draft pick, which they passed on.

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