Quick Facts
Biography
Alessandro "Sandro" Grande (born September 29, 1977) is a former Canadian soccer player.
Club career
Italy
Born in Montreal, Quebec, Grande began his career in Italy, He played four years with U.S.Frenter Larino and Potenza and Frosinone in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Grande became the first Quebec-born footballer to sign with an Serie A club, signing a three-year deal with Brescia in 2001. After appearing in just one match for the first team, in the Intertoto Cup in July 2001, Grande was loaned back to Serie C side Frosinone, and then later played in Serie D with U.S.Frenter Larino and Potenza and Albalonga.
Canada/Scandinavia
Grande returned to Canada in 2004 to play for the Montreal Impact of the USL First Division, where he played 30 games and was selected to the First All-Star Team for 2004.
In July 2005, he moved to Norway to play for Viking in the Norwegian Premier League, before moving on to Molde in March 2006. After his contract with Molde expired in 2007, the club chose not to renew it. After fully recovering from surgery on both knees, he returned to Montreal Impact. Upon his return Grande scored one goal in six regular season games, which he scored on September 5 against the Minnesota Thunder. He helped the Impact qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League quarter finals, playing six games in the tournament.
On December 2, 2008 the Montreal Impact announced the re-signing of Grande. He was released July 20, 2009 following an in-game chocking incident with team captain Mauro Biello.
Lithuania
On March 16, 2010 Sandro Grande signed a contract with Lithuanian club FK Suduva.
Return to Canada
In 2012, Sandro Grande signed a contract with the Saint-Léonard FC of the Première Ligue de Soccer du Québec. He was capped for 13 games, scoring 3 goals.
Currently, Sandro Grande is the Technical Director of Les Étoiles de L'Est. He works alongside Fausto Di Giovanni who has taken Vitor Frade's tactical periodization and has revolutionized it. Di Giovanni actually is the innovator of the Tiki Taka, having introduced it one year before FC Barcelona did.
International career
Grande made his debut for the Canadian national football team in a September 2004 World Cup qualification match against Costa Rica and has earned a total of 12 caps, scoring 1 goal. He has represented Canada in 4 FIFA World Cup qualification matches and was a member of Canada's squad at the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
International goals
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 September 2005 | Estadio El Sardinero, Santander, Spain |  Spain | 1–2 | 1–2 | Friendly match |