Here’s what happened in Major League Soccer action between the Montreal Impact and Toronto FC on Saturday evening at Stade Saputo, in case you missed it.
Game summary in a sentence
Toronto FC didn’t have Jermain Defoe in its 18-man roster, but that didn’t prevent the Reds from rolling to a 2-0 win, courtesy of goals from Gilberto and Luke Moore.
• Read the full match report and check out the boxscore
• More: TFC’s Defoe sits out Impact game with injury || Paul Dolan: ‘Impact need to be overhauled’ || McInerney a bright light for Montreal ||
Main thoughts on the match
A brilliant rebound effort from TFC: After a dismal 3-0 road loss to D.C. United in midweek, Toronto coach Ryan Nelsen called Saturday’s contest a “must-win” game for the Reds. To call any game in August a “must-win,” with a little less than half of a season still to play, is a major stretch—although you can understand his point, to a degree, in light of the Reds’ recent poor form, with just one win in their last eight games prior to arriving in Montreal.
So, Saturday’s game wasn’t a “must-win,” but there’s no doubt it was a big result for TFC after their wretched outing in Washington. There were no passengers for the Reds on this night in Montreal—everyone pulled their weight in what was one of Toronto’s best team performances of the campaign.
The Reds dominated the Impact for 90 minutes, with Michael Bradley taking full advantage of the acres of space afforded him in midfield to dictate proceedings and spray brilliant passes—like the one that released Dominic Oduro down the right that eventually led to Luke Moore’s goal. This was one of the American’s best games for Toronto, and it hopefully will go a long way in silencing critics who question his commitment and his influence.
While Bradley and Collen Warner combined to great effect in the centre, Oduro and Jonathan Osorio offered balance to the attack on the wings. Osorio especially was excellent in both ends of the pitch, doing an expert job of tracking Justin Mapp and marking him out of the game.
Gilberto scored the opener in the 11th minute, and it came as a result of a beautiful, fluid movement that saw Bradley change the point of attack with a great ball out wide to Oduro, who then hit a cutback volley back into the middle for the Brazilian to finish with aplomb. Gilberto’s tireless running off the ball, his link up play and hold up play was a major reason why Toronto won this game.
As for the defence, it’s come in for criticism in recent weeks from Nelsen for conceding what he’s called “soft goals.” On Saturday, a back four anchored by the young duo of Doneil Henry and Nick Hagglund brilliantly managed the game in front of them, as TFC’s back line was never close to being opened up by the Impact. Warren Creavalle, in only his second match for the Reds, was outstanding at the right back position, closing down the dangerous Andres Romero and making well-timed runs down the flanks in attack.
All of this, by the way, was achieved without Jermain Defoe in the roster. The team’s top scorer has been carrying a niggling groin injury, and the club said he will undergo a scan on Sunday to determine the extent of the injury. The expectation is that he’ll miss Wednesday’s All-Star game in Portland.
Montreal is a mess: Losers of six straight matches, the Montreal Impact are a team in disarray, essentially out of the playoff race before the all-star break. If ever one game underlined how badly a team needed a major overhaul, this was it.
It wasn’t that long ago the Impact boasted a solid spine, featuring forward Marco Di Vaio, midfielder Patrice Bernier and defender Matteo Ferrari. They’ve been loyal servants to the club, and served as the backbone of the side that qualified for the playoffs a season ago. But this loss showed just how much of a liability they have all become.
Ferrari struggled with the pace of TFC’s attack, and hard trouble marshalling Montreal’s defence. Likewise, the game passed by Bernier in midfield, as he was unable to press Bradley and Warner, giving them far too much space and time on the ball. A year ago, Di Vaio was one of the league’s most dangerous goal-scorers. On Saturday, he was a non-factor, having to resort to throwing himself to the ground in order to win fouls around the box.
Earlier this week, owner Joey Saputo took the bold—but long overdue—step of relieving Nick De Santis of his duties of GM and had over control of player personnel decision to Frank Klopas. Montreal’s coach has a big job ahead of him in rebuilding this team, and it starts with bringing in young, athletic players who can keep up with the speed of MLS and serve as the spine of the team—it’s clear that Di Vaio, Bernier and Ferrari are no longer up to the task.
He said it
Nelsen on Bradley: "I think this was one of his best performances in a #TFC shirt."
— John Molinaro (@JohnMolinaro) August 2, 2014
3 stars
1) Michael Bradley: What a game from ‘the General’—he dictated the pace of the game with his poised play in midfield and helped set up both goals.
2) Gilberto: The Brazilian put in a lot of hard work off the ball—as usual—and netted his third goal of the season to give the Reds an early lead.
3) Dominic Oduro: He absolutely owned Montreal defender Krzysztof Krol on the right flank with his speed and touch, and collected two assists.
News and notes
Canadian forward Anthony Jackson-Hamel, an Impact youth academy product who signed with the club on Friday, made his pro debut as a second-half substitute… Midfielder Dilly Duka, acquired in a trade from Chicago this past week, also made his Impact debut… Montreal’s Issey Nakajima-Farran returned from suspension but did not dress for this game. The Canadian was traded to Montreal on May 16 in the deal that brought Collen Warner to Toronto… Defender Defender Hassoun Camara will miss Montreal’s next MLS game due to yellow card accumulation…
Stat of the night
TFC has 29 points on the season—the same amount of points they tallied in the entire 2013 campaign.
Head to head
Toronto leads the all-time series against Montreal with three wins and two draws in seven meetings. These teams will meet for a second and final time this season on Oct. 18 in Toronto.
Tweet of the night
Wedding photos at Stade Saputo pre-game (via @impactmontreal). #MTLvTOR pic.twitter.com/FnLfaz57Fa
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) August 2, 2014
What’s next?
Toronto FC continues its four-game road trip in Columbus (Aug. 9) and Kansas City (Aug. 16). The Montreal Impact visit the Philadelphia Union next Saturday and then return home on Aug. 16 to host the Chicago Fire.
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