Morelli is back.

Following an ACL injury vs. Atlético Ottawa in a 1-0 loss last year, HFX Wanderers forward João Morelli will return to Halifax for training, the club announced in a statement on Friday.

The Halifax Wanderers are excited to announce forward João Morelli has been cleared to return to the squad following recovery from a knee injury suffered in the 2022 CPL season.

Morelli will travel to Halifax in the coming weeks to rejoin his teammates in training with the goal of a return to game action in July.

The club states that the goal is for him to return to game action in July.

João won both the CPL golden boot and MVP award in the 2021 season after scoring 14 goals throughout the season.

His return will be a significant boon for the HFX Wanderers, addressing their pressing need for goals. The club is last for goals scored in the 2023 CPL season, having scored just 6 goals in 8 matches. Historically, the Wanderers have struggled when it comes to scoring. The only season where they had more goals than matches played was the shortened 2020 season, where they scored 12 goals in 7 regular season matches. In the first full season with Morelli (2021), the club scored 28 goals in 28 matches, also being the lowest-scoring team in the league that season.

I don't think I can even describe what I'm feeling right now, really just excitement, I can’t stop thinking about getting to play at the Wanderers Grounds again, I’ve been dreaming about it since last year. I really love Halifax, and I can’t wait to play there again in front of the fans and hopefully score a lot of goals again.

- João Morelli (via HFX Wanderers)