The hero of the day, Matthew Chouener, scored his team’s second goal in the 47th minute with a 2-1 win over FC Charlotte, deprived of a dozen players whose names were registered in the MLS COVID protocol.
To quote politicians from a well-known sovereign party, let’s say that the winning conditions are met for Montreal to raise the bar after two defeats without scoring a single goal.
That victory, which comes after two losses, including a 4-0 shot in Toronto in the Canadian Championship semi-finals, propels CF Montreal to second in the East, a small unit behind FC New York City.
By entering the break in place of Lassi Lappalainen to activate a somewhat timid attack and the left lane, Choinière proved his right coach in his first long sprint.
Well-supported by a cross from Romell Quioto at the entrance to the sprint zone, Quebecer kept the ball in the opposite zone, baffling an opponent with a hook, a gesture that time and again Nacho Piatti managed to reach perfection in the same turf.
I’ve seen him make this gesture so often that I have to dedicate it to him,” said Chouener, smiling especially after the match. I’ve seen him do that a lot in training and he cheats on me like that. To score as soon as I come in, to score the winning goal, that makes me really happy. After that, I drank the juice for 120 minutes.
If Wilfried Nancy hid his pride right after the goal, he admitted it made it a bit velvety to see a scoring player who barely entered the field.
“I’m not the most expressive, my wife criticizes her, but I certainly got goosebumps,” Nancy said in a press briefing. I know my team. My feelings were contained, but the chills were present.
Cchoener’s cross shot beat goalkeeper George Marks, who made his MLS debut, to his left. This was Cchoener’s first goal in a match at Garber Circuit.
He celebrated it all by putting his hand on his closed fist, a karate gesture, a special request from his girlfriend’s younger brother, who is in the stands.
I looked at my family and everyone had a big banana in their face, I imagined a keepker. It is a sick thing to sign up the day after St. Jean.
But the match referee proceeded to review the goal, with Zachary Brault-Gillard in an offside position and appeared to snag the goalkeeper, without touching the ball.
The decision was upheld after a few minutes of suspense to confirm Cchoener’s second goal of the season.
Coach Wilfried Nancy admitted that it was not clear to me the goal. Most of the time, when they go to see recovery, they reconsider their decision. They judged that the goalkeeper had no chance of touching the ball. We take it. We need it now.
I was nervous and wondering what they saw and didn’t see,” said the match player. I didn’t know what was going on. When he pointed to the middle of the field, I was relieved.
Montreal Football Club started its game on the right foot in the first half. Since the sixth minute, a cross from Zachary Broult Gillard found Quioto, forgotten in the six meters from Charlotte. With his flair, the Honduran instinctively crossed the ball to Marx’s left.
But the celebrations did not last long. Three minutes later, Sebastian Briza dived to shoot a ball he could and should have pinned.
In the process Guzman Curojo was forgotten between Joel Waterman, Samuel Piette and Lassi Lappalainen and redirected without hesitation from one of his teammates in the opponent’s goal.
The rest of the first half was somewhat lackluster in the hosts’ attack. We feel the absence of Djordji Mihajlovic, although we are confident that the team has the depth to replace him.
However, in the break, Nancy decided to replace Ahmed Hamdy with Ismail Kony. Matko Miljevic, which started last week, was unused on Saturday night.
Combined with the offensive animation, the score took precedence after the bitter loss suffered in Toronto on Wednesday.
Rommel Koyoto admitted it wasn’t an easy match in Toronto. We are happy to turn the page quickly. It was the kind of atmosphere that transported us.
Ultras return
We haven’t seen them at Stade Saputo since last September. For the first time this season, a group of ultras were held in the western stands of the stadium.
They were first installed in Division 131, and relayed just before the meeting began to Division 132, which they occupied until last year. At odds with the club since the name change, the Ultras saw their division closed and some members were banned from the stadium in 2021.
At first they were silent for the first few minutes, a sleeping emoji on a banner, then they animated part of the evening with their songs, slightly louder than the songs of the 1642 group at the other end of the field.
“I knew before the match started that they were going to be there and I heard them,” Wilfried Nancy said. There were twists and turns between supporters on both sides. It’s much better if there is an occasion fans counting. We need everyone, the Ultras and the year 1642.
“It was great to see all the fans,” Cchoener added. The more there is, the more noise we hear, the more stimulated we are. They are welcome.
The ultras present also sent some messages to the club’s senior management with some banners. We can read there: Forever we will sing your name, trace
And the Domestic brand change, international failure
or Frankly, proud and without regret, our battle continues
.
Present at the game, owner Joey Saputo and president Gabriel Gervais spoke at one point while looking at Section 132 of their chest.
How will the return of the Ultras be viewed? New slingshot or outstretched hand?
The return of Mason Toy
The return of striker Mason Toe was unanimous.
He has been absent from the field since August 2021, first injured in the shoulder and then in the close ones, and the American finally entered an official match in the 78th minute.
From the first touch of the ball, after a few seconds, he mistook the goal with his head, after a cross from Rommel Koyoto, again.
Nancy said I’m very happy, but also disappointed that he didn’t score. I wanted to give him minutes. He worked a lot and was very brave. We hope you will help us in the future.
The sequel promises to be plump for Montreal Eleven.
CF Montreal will play the next two games on the US West Coast. First in Seattle on Wednesday, then against LA Galaxy next Monday – for Southern Neighbors’ National Day, this time.
