Toronto-Montreal, like a gourmet meal

A pasta dish is a pasta dish. But change the ingredients and the way you prepare it, and you can go from weeknight spaghetti Bolognese to haute cuisine. The third derby of the season between CF Montreal and Toronto FC falls into this second category.

Jean-Francois Teotonio
The Press

The ingredients: Lorenzo Insigne. Federico Bernardeschi. Mark-Anthony Kaye. Three additions that elevate the TFC sauce. While that of the CFM has only simmered well since their last confrontation.

At the base of everything, CF Montreal, strong in its second place in the East, will find Toronto FC on Sunday evening with only one loss in eight games since the arrival of their stars. A very different context from Montreal’s great victory at Stade Saputo in July, and its 4-0 loss in the semi-finals of the Canadian Championship the previous month.

“It is sure that it is different, underlined Wilfried Nancy, Friday, speaking about the Toronto team. They have offensive assets, that’s clear. It’s a team that is already more confident, playing in a different way now. »

The head coach agrees that facing such stars makes “players want to do well”.

“I very rarely go into the players’ locker room, if at all. But they like challenges. […] I expect them to play a good game. »

play fighting spirit

What is the strategy, then, to counter the strike force of these newcomers? Insigne has four goals and two assists since joining. Bernardeschi has put on six, in addition to serving his teammates three times. All in just eight games.

“They are productive, agrees Nancy. No, there is no particular plan in relation to these players. The plan is to defend the player who will be closest. Even more aggressively. And then try to stop them from doing what they do well. »

“These are players who play on the wrong foot. They like to come in and shoot. We’re going to have to be very aggressive on them. »

A player like Kamal Miller, on his way to Qatar to face the world’s elite, could see in this match the opportunity to rub shoulders with players of this caliber. And, therefore, see it as an additional motivation. But don’t tell Wilfried Nancy.

“I’m going to be very honest with you,” he begins, smiling. If he has a double motivation against Toronto, I have a problem. I want him to always be motivated to play every game. That is the most important. Kamal knows this very well. He has individual goals he wants to achieve. […] But that he plays a very good match against these two players, for me it doesn’t matter. What interests me is that he is consistent and continues to do a good job. »

“He will remain a goalscorer”

At first glance, CF Montreal seems to have a good depth on offense. Romell Quioto, Kei Kamara, Mason Toye, Sunusi Ibrahim, Bjørn Johnsen, Chinonso Offor. There’s Jojea Kwizera, too, but he’s mostly been employed in the hallways this year.

The problem is that Johnsen has not played a single minute this season, he who is gradually returning from injury. Offor was acquired at the deadline as a player “for the future”, according to Nancy. Ibrahim had to rework his approach after, and despite, a great performance against Forge in May. The Nigerian has only stepped onto the pitch once since.

This leaves Quioto, Kamara and Toye. And the latter is still looking for his bearings, as evidenced by his two good missed chances in the last game.

About Johnson and Offor, Nancy points out that “the discussions were clear”.

“There are players ahead of them. What I like about them is that they work very, very well. They help the group to become better. »

In terms of injuries, the absence of Lassi Lappalainen will be longer than expected.

“We are talking about a fortnight,” says Nancy. He is reluctant to consider a return before the international break at the end of September, assessing the “risks”.

Defenseman Rudy Camacho, who was injured two weeks ago in Houston, may return to action on Sunday.

“He is training well. […] There’s a good chance he’s in the group. »