Impact president Saputo defends suspended coach, hopes to extend Di Vaio

MONTREAL – Coach Marco Schallibaum still has the support of Montreal Impact management despite being suspended four times in his first season in Major League Soccer.

Team president Joey Saputo said Monday he even hopes the coach known as the Swiss Volcano signs a contract extension.

The former Swiss international fullback is on a one-year contract that was to extended if the team made the playoffs.

The Impact are in first place in the Eastern Conference and are a good bet to qualify for the post-season, but Saputo said he is already in talks to bring Schallibaum back.

“I was ready back in July to extend his contract because I think he brings a lot to the club,” he said.

Schallibaum was hit with an automatic one-game suspension for being ejected from a 2-1 victory over D.C. United last week. He got into a verbal altercation with D.C. players on the sidelines after midfielder Justin Mapp was shoved into a television camera.

He was later slapped with an extra game and a US$5,000 fine by MLS. He sat out Montreal’s 5-0 win Saturday night over Houston and will be absent again when Montreal travels to Philadelphia this week.

It was the fourth time this season Schallibaum was suspended for losing his temper during a game. He will have missed five of the team’s first 25 matches with suspensions.

“What I like about Marco is the fact that he’s very passionate,” said Saputo. “I think he’s more passionate than (sporting director) Nick De Santis and I am.

“He understood. There’s no use to harp on something when the person who committed the foul understands that he was in the wrong. He apologized not only to me, but to the players. We left it at that.”

The club president also assured MLS commissioner Don Garber that Schallibaum’s would try to avoid losing control of his temper in future.

Saputo spoke at the announcement of the team’s new charitable foundation.