Mathieu Choiniere is heading to Europe.
CF Montreal announced Tuesday that Choiniere is joining Switzerland’s Grasshopper Club Zurich, ending a months-long saga after the homegrown midfielder reportedly requested a trade in May due to an impasse in contract negotiations.
The Major League Soccer club did not reveal the transfer fee for the two-time league all-star.
Choiniere joined Montreal’s academy in 2011. He made his professional debut in 2018 and played in 119 MLS games for the club.
The versatile 25-year-old from Saint-Alexandre, Que., was Montreal’s MVP last year after a breakout campaign of five goals and five assists in 28 MLS games. This season, he had two goals and three assists through 17 games.
Internationally, the five-foot-nine, 150-pound Choiniere has five caps for Canada. He made his first start for the national team and scored in the shootout of a 4-3 penalty kicks loss to Uruguay in the Copa America third-place game on July 13.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Aug. 27, 2024.