They pushed, they pulled, they looked for the breach. And finally, they found her. Santos Laguna scored late against CF Montreal to win 1-0 at Corona Stadium in Torreón, Mexico.
Posted at 12:10 a.m.
Updated at 0:39
The Mexicans will therefore arrive at the Olympic Stadium next Tuesday with a one-goal lead in the second leg of this clash in the round of 16 of the CONCACAF Champions League.
CF Montreal, even if it had taken the Mexican attacks from the start, seemed in a good position to get away with a more than honorable draw in the circumstances.
But a lucky goal from Alberto Ocejo in the 88and minute, with a headed ball that passed through the hands of Sebastian Breza, sounded the death knell for the visitors’ hopes.
“I told the players that we had four halves to play, commented head coach Wilfried Nancy by videoconference. We could have done better in the first half, but I really liked the second. We had more personality in our game. We were calmer and, suddenly, we created chances. »
I liked that in the difficult context. We will focus on the return match. You will have to earn it.
Wilfried Nancy, head coach of CF Montreal
Still, the scenario could have been very different for Montrealers.
In the sixth minute, we thought that Romell Quioto, still a lethal attacker in the last third, had given CF Montreal an ideal start to the match. Except that his goal, resulting from a good run and a strike from a restricted angle in depth, was finally refused. The video assistant detected a fault committed by Lassi Lappalainen in the middle of the field during the construction of the game. Questionable application of the rules. And this is not the only controversial decision whistled by the referees during this meeting.
PHOTO FROM TWITTER ACCOUNT @CLUBSANTOS
Alan Cervantes and Lassi Lappalainen
“It’s unfortunate because we started well,” said Nancy. We wanted to score an away goal, but I haven’t seen the action yet. Apparently they saw a fault. It’s hard to swallow though. »
For the rest, Santos Laguna dominated the engagement. Tangible sign of the pace of this match: the locals were able to hit no less than 16 corners, including 9 already in the first half. They also took 26-7 shots.
CF Montreal managed to get their foot on the ball a little more consistently in the second half. Several fine deep passes from Djordje Mihailovic to Joaquin Torres and Quioto lit up the Montreal offensive, but we lacked finishing in the last third to really question the skills of the Mexican goalkeeper.
It was a very first match this season for Wilfried Nancy’s squad. The legs were heavy at the end of the meeting. This was the case for Mathieu Choinière, who asked to be substituted after feeling cramps. We also saw a slightly less engaged Romell Quioto in the second half. It should also be taken into account that CF Montreal faced a Santos Laguna which, although last in the standings of its domestic championship, is in the middle of its own season.
The door opens for Rida Zouhir
Montreal also had to deal with several major absentees: Samuel Piette and Alistair Johnston are on the COVID-19 protocol, while Mason Toye and Ahmed Hamdi are injured.
This meant that the young Rida Zouhir, from the Academy, obtained a second tenure with the big club. And he delivered a very solid performance. This is not the last time we see him in Nancy’s eleven.
“He was a little feverish at the start and that’s normal,” commented his coach. He lost a few balloons. Afterwards, he relaxed, and it was much better. He is able to pierce the lines and play forward. He has things to improve, but for a first game, I liked the way he approached the second half. »
Sebastian Breza, holder ahead of James Pantemis after long weeks of speculation about the identity of the starting goalkeeper, has imposed himself as a wall in front of the CF Montreal cage. This was especially true at the 29and minute when he blocked one-on-one shots after an Eduardo Aguirre breakaway.
That’s what he’s here for, Sebastian. He did his job and that’s good for us.
Wilfried Nancy, head coach of CF Montreal
The Montrealers are therefore heading back to the metropolis to play the return match next Tuesday.
“It will be fun to find our supporters, rejoiced midfielder Mathieu Choinière. With the 12and player with us, it will be easier to have more energy.
“It’s a team that goes quickly in front, we will have to manage the counter-attacks a little better and be better organized. With the energy of 12and player, we will manage to be well organized and win those balls. »