This match had barely started when we were already able to imagine a one-sided final result. And not to the advantage of CF Montreal.
The Impact lost 4-1 against Atlanta United on Saturday evening in Georgia. To be honest, Hernán Losada’s men were outclassed against a team in very good form up front.
A team which also took advantage of this victory to confirm its place in the playoffs. Meanwhile, Montreal has not won in its last five games in this race to the post-season tournament. He died at a very bad time, with four matches to play on the calendar.
Solid from the start
Atlanta’s quality was quickly felt on Saturday. It was tumbling down both lanes in the first half. Thiago Almada, Xande Silva and Saba Lobjanidze maintained a hell of a pace on the Georgian offensive curtain. George Campbell, in particular, had difficulty keeping up.
A pace that Montreal still managed to contain at the start of the match. We had to wait until the 30e minute for the Montreal defense to falter. This goal, logically, came from the foot of Silva, on a pass from Atlanta’s new designated player, Saba Lobjanidze.
Three minutes later, the locals came back with a superb combination between Silva and Almada. It was 2-0, and we felt that the carrots were done for the CFM.
And yet. At the 40e, a surprising face gave hope to Montrealers. Ahmed Hamdi, who got his first start since the Canadian Championship in June, scored with a nice shot from the edge of the area. It was a goal against the run of play, yes, but the Bleu-blanc-noir nevertheless benefited from a certain relaxation on the part of the Five Stripes at this moment.
Costly mistakes
Short-term release. Upon returning from the locker room, Gabriele Corbo made a big mistake while trying to give the ball to Jonathan Sirois. To make matters worse, this ball fell directly into the feet of Giorgios Giakoumakis, author of 14 goals this season. Its 15eat the expense of Corbo and the CFM, moved him to first place in MLS scoring.
Atlanta slowed down in the second half, particularly late in the game. Montreal got some interesting chances. But the damage was done.
And to put the icing on the cake, Edwin Mosquera scored his team’s fourth goal in the 90thea few minutes after the expulsion of Joel Waterman for an obvious foul in his area.
Hard evening at the office.
RISING
Ahmed Hamdi
PHOTO MIKE STEWART, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Xande Silva (16) and Ahmed Hamdi (7)
Ahmed Hamdi has wandered in the limbo of the CF Montreal squad in recent years. With the decline of Bryce Duke, the termination of Matko Miljevic’s contract and the disappearance of Sean Rea, Hamdi obtained an important hearing. If he didn’t break the house himself in the middle, his nice goal should buy him time in this position.
FALLING
George Campbell
The Campbell-Waterman-Corbo trio in defense has been effective recently for CF Montreal. But on Saturday night, Campbell’s poor mobility was particularly exposed by the liveliness of Atlanta’s offensive players. He was replaced at halftime by youngster Fernando Alvarez, who played a second 45 minutes since arriving with Montreal this summer.