Ignacio Piatti expected to be ready for start of Impact season

All signs point to Montreal Impact midfielder Ignacio Piatti being ready to start the season on time.

Piatti, who turns 30 on February 4, had surgery to treat tendinitis in his left knee in November and his recovery is going to plan. He's been able to work out on his own and is expected to return to full training next week when the Impact move their preseason camp from Montreal to Mexico.

"He’s pushing everyday. It’s important to make sure there’s no setback and he’s with us for the whole year — healthy," Impact head coach Frank Klopas told the Montreal Gazette last week.

Following his arrival at the club in August as their latest designated player, Piatti impressed right away. He made eight appearances in 2014, scoring four goals and adding three assists.

The Impact's season begins on February 24 with a CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal match against Mexican side Pachuca. The return leg is March 3 at Olympic Stadium and then comes the MLS season opener on March 7 at D.C. United.

"I hope my first goal will be against Pachuca," Piatti said according to RDS.

After finishing with the worst record in MLS last season, Montreal has made a couple significant moves to strengthen the squad this winter. They acquired forward Dominic Oduro in a trade with Toronto FC and signed Belgian defender Laurent Ciman from Standard Liege.

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Yahoo Canada Sports. Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter. Follow @israelfehr