One is imperial at home, the other is unable to impose his rhythm on the road. What had to happen happened, in New York: CF Montreal was outclassed by NYC FC by a score of 2-0.
One Martinez was superior to the other. New York’s Alonso stood out with two superb goals. Meanwhile, Montreal’s Josef missed several scoring chances in the first half.
However, he was not the only one of his team to lack opportunism. During the first half, the Montrealers led several creative offensive drives.
The defenders quickly restarted the attack. On the periphery, the midfielders multiplied the attempts of crossing and shooting. However, the games fell flat in the penalty area, often due to a lack of execution.
After scoring the first goal, NYC FC – also nicknamed the Pigeons – closed down the midfield, which they protected brilliantly until the final whistle.
“At half-time, we were in a good position even though they had a one-goal lead,” midfielder Nathan Saliba summed up in a press conference after the game.
Sirois convincing
However, the chain went off the rails in the second half. The players then began to confuse “actions and haste,” according to coach Laurent Courtois.
“We lacked inspiration in the final third,” he summed up. “We shot ourselves in the foot by giving up transitions.”
Looking at the numbers alone, one might think that the game was fiercely contested. Montreal had 51% of the possession. They had three shots on target, compared to seven for the opponent.
But the reality is quite different. Had it not been for the brilliance of goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois, the locals could have won by a much larger margin. The Quebecer distinguished himself with several saves in the second half, most of them spectacular. “Technically, we were less decisive than usual,” analyzed the goalie. “We had more difficulty combining than against Philadelphia. [lors du dernier match]. »
PHOTO BRAD PENNER, USA TODAY SPORTS VIA REUTERS CON
Jonathan Sirois
March 10
CF Montreal’s last road win was on March 10, when they won 3-2 against Inter Miami. Montreal has only won twice on the opposition field this year. They have not picked up a point against NYC FC since April 2019.
New York improves its home record to 8-3-1 with the win. The Pigeons struggled early in the season, winning just one game in six games. Since then, they’ve climbed to fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings with 35 points. Montreal is now ranked 12the rank, with 22 points.
Note that Matias Coccaro made a return to the game this evening in the 46th minute.e minute, taking the place of Sunusi Ibrahim. The Uruguayan had been withdrawn from the training during the last match, against Philadelphia, after showing angry outbursts during a training session.
CF Montreal will play its next home game on Saturday against the Vancouver Whitecaps.