(Montreal) CF Montreal has barely recovered from its spectacular end to the game against the Columbus Crew on Friday before it has to return to the lawn at Saputo Stadium. And maybe that’s a good thing.
Posted at 2:20 p.m.
Ranked second in the Eastern Association, the Bleu-blanc-noir will host the Fire on Tuesday night. He will look to continue his momentum while dealing a heavy blow to the Chicago team.
Three days ago, the Montreal troupe scored two goals late in the second half to save themselves with a tie to win and secure their place in the playoffs. Despite the fatigue, the players want to feed off this performance and the supercharged atmosphere at Stade Saputo, which makes this quick return to the field a little less grueling.
“There will be a bit of fatigue, but with the electricity in the air at the stadium, we almost want to get back there as soon as possible,” defender Alistair Johnston said before Monday’s practice. That’s the fun thing about a midweek game, you can quickly build something. We hope to be able to absorb the energy of the crowd to overcome the fatigue. »
We only have to go back a fortnight to note the last match between the opponents on Tuesday. On August 27 in Chicago, CF Montreal dominated the first half and scored twice before spending the final 45 minutes defending their 10-man lead.
Since that loss, the Fire have kept their head above water by remaining undefeated in their next three outings (1-0-2). He also picked up his points against direct rivals in the Eastern playoff chase and is coming off a fine 3-1 win over Inter Miami CF.
Ezra Hendrickson’s men currently sit six points out of a playoff berth, but time is starting to play against them. The Fire must absolutely win against the Montrealers and they know it very well. They also expect a frenzied start to the match.
“Every team that has to win for their survival is going to come out strong and with everything they have. It’s what we expect from the Fire and it’s a rematch for them, defender Kamal Miller said. These teams are desperate and we know that if we play our style and frustrate them, they will become more anxious. They will feel like they have to score a goal and that will open the game for us. »
There are only three to five games left this season for the Eastern teams and the pressure of the playoffs is slowly being felt. CF Montreal has taken note of this in its last three outings.
Before his draw against the Crew, he had played an emotional confrontation against Toronto FC and he had fought quite a battle against the New York Red Bulls, who are only three points behind the Montrealers.
For head coach Wilfried Nancy, the duel against the Fire and the next three will serve to enter the playoffs with a high level of intensity.
“You’ve seen it in recent games, the intensity has increased significantly. I expect the same intensity on Tuesday, he said. The games that are taking place right now are preparations for the playoffs. It’s the intensity that will make the difference. Everyone is on the same level in the playoffs because everyone wants to go to the next round. The idea will be to maintain our intensity, or even increase it, and then play our style to be successful. »
With her squad all but guaranteed to host a home playoff, Nancy isn’t keen on changing her approach to her starting lineup, even though fatigue might set in.
The recent qualification for the playoffs also did not change the head coach’s plans, as the second game of a three-in-eight-day streak for the Bleu-blanc-noir approaches.
“The players I choose have nothing to do with qualifying for the playoffs and everything to do with the number of games we play,” insisted Nancy. We already had an idea in mind regarding the meeting against the Fire and I will stick to it. The goal is to find a good balance with my players. Some of them played a lot of minutes, but I have to use everyone. It will be like that for the last four games and, by the same token, we want to try to stay in second position because it is an objective for us. »
In the Montreal camp, Lassi Lappalainen (adductors) and Ahmed Hamdi (right leg) will once again be absent, but Ismaël Koné should be back in training, he who missed the game against the Crew.