The Montreal Impact are on the verge of making history.
Montreal can become the first Canadian club and first team from Major League Soccer to win the CONCACAF Champions League—all that stands in their way is the formidable Club America of Mexico.
The Impact will take on Club America at Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium on Wednesday night in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League final. Here are some things you should know about this game.
Wednesday programming alert: Watch Club America vs. Montreal Impact in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League final live on Sportsnet World. Coverage starts at 9:00 pm ET/6:00 pm PT. || Sportsnet World NOW || Broadcast schedule
Impact flying the flag for MLS
The Impact is the first Canadian team to reach the final, and hopes to become the first MLS side to win it all. In the six Champions League tournaments since the first one in 2008-09, only one other Major League Soccer club has ever reached the final (Real Salt Lake in 2011). Other than that, the finals have always been contested between two Mexican sides.
Having served as CONCACAF doormats for years now, MLS is now knocking on the door. Montreal advancing to the final would give the league a much-needed credibility boost, as well as raise the profile of MLS outside of Canada and the United States.
But history is working against the Impact, as MLS clubs have a combined record of 2-32-7 in CONCACAF games played in Mexico, and over 100,000 fans are expected to fill Azteca Stadium on Wednesday, making for an intimidating atmosphere. If the Impact can keep it close and not get blown out like America’s last opponent—the Mexican side trashed Costa Rican outfit Herediano 6-0 in the second leg of the semifinals at Azteca—then they give themselves a much better chance headed into next week’s decisive second leg in Montreal.
“We’ve been working hard in training to play a solid road game and return to Montreal in a good spot for the home leg,” Impact defender Laurent Ciman told the team’s official website. “It’s going to be a difficult game and we will have to defend a lot. They have good attacking players who like to play the one-two in the final third, so we will have to manage the game well.”
Who are Club America?
Founded in 1916, Club de Futbol America S.A. de C.V., commonly known as Club America, is one of the biggest and best teams in Mexico. It has won the Mexican league title a record 12 times, and won the CONCACF Champions’ Cup—the forerunner to the Champions League—on five occasions.
Owned by media company Grupo Televisa, the team plays its home games at the Azteca Stadium, the largest stadium in Mexico with a seating capacity of approximately 104,000. Club America is coached by Gustavo Matosas, a former international who earned a handful of caps for Uruguay during his playing career. The team has never won the CONCACAF Champions League, and this marks its first trip to the final.
Matosas’ side cruised through the group stage of this year’s tournament, topping a group that included Comunicaciones of Guatemala and Puerto Rico Bayamon. The Mexican side then dispatched a pair of Costa Rican teams—Saprissa and Herediano—in the next two knockout rounds.
Players to watch out for include Mexican striker Oribe Peralta, who is tied for first in the Champions League scoring race with five goals. Teammate Martin Zuniga also has five goals, while Argentine winger Dario Benedetto has four.
“We know they are a good team and we have respect for them, but we won’t fear them,” Montreal coach Frank Klopas said.
Cooper debuts for Montreal?
Newly arrived striker Kenny Cooper could make his debut for Montreal on Wednesday after joining the club via MLS waivers on April 12.
Cooper is ranked 18th all-time in MLS scoring with 75 career regular season goals. He most recently spent the 2014 campaign with the Seattle Sounders, registering three goals and four assists in 22 league matches.
Cooper, who stands six-foot-three-inches and weighs 210 pounds, will give Montreal more of a physical presence up front than Jack McInerney, who’s been starting for the Impact in recent weeks. Cooper’s hold-up play on Wednesday will be vital for Montreal if it’s going to earn a positive result against a swarming America t Azteca.
“There will be a big reliance on Montreal’s forward players and midfielders to relieve the pressure they will be under and the hold-up play, particularly from Kenny Cooper, as the big target forward, will be critical if he ends up starting the match,” Sportsnet analyst Paul Dolan said.
“Ignacio Piatti’s touch and ability to keep the ball will be crucial and of course, they are going to need big moments from their defence and goalkeeper Evan Bush as they are likely to see a wave of attack that must be stemmed as once that momentum gets going, with the crowd behind the home team, it is very difficult to stop.”
Don’t bunker down
A former goalkeeper with the Canadian national team, Paul Dolan played at Azteca Stadium and can attest to just how intimidating the atmosphere can be.
He warns that the worst thing Montreal can do is bunker down and put all 11 men behind the ball for 90 minutes and try to defend vs. Club America.
“It’s going to be very, very difficult to get anything out of Mexico so every minute they play without conceding chances will be considered a victory. What they can’t do though is just try to get through the match without exerting any kind of positive play themselves as 90 minutes on the back foot is suicide at Azteca,” Dolan said.
“There must be moments of the game where the Impact keep possession and provide some sort of threat on the attack or on the counter, otherwise Club America will just camp out comfortably in Montreal’s half the entire game.”
Montreal rested, America keeping busy
Club America is currently sixth in the Mexican league with a 6-4-4 record and 22 points, just three points off the pace of league leaders Chivas Guadalajara, the team’s biggest rival.
The Impact have rescheduled two MLS games and will play only one league match this month to accommodate the finals. Montreal is well rested, not having played since suffering a 3-0 loss to the Houston Dynamo in league play on April 11.
Club America, on the other hand, is coming off of a 4-0 loss on Saturday to Queretaro in league play. It also has a very important game against Chivas Guadalajara this weekend before the team flies to Montreal for the decisive leg in the Champions League final.
Absences for Montreal
Winger Justin Mapp (fractured elbow) and forward Cameron Porter (torn ACL) are out with long-term injuries for Montreal.
Midfielder Eric Alexander is ineligible to play for Montreal—he’s cup tied, having previously appeared for the New York Red Bulls in the group stage of the tournament before being traded to the Impact in January. Eric Kronberg is also ineligible after playing for Sporting Kansas City earlier in the competition. Fellow goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau is out with a shoulder injury, so the Impact have signed Canadian John Smits on emergency loan from NASL club FC Edmonton to back up Evan Bush.
Looking ahead to the second leg
Montreal will host the second leg of the Champions League final on April 29 at Olympic Stadium.
The MLS club announced on Tuesday that the return match will be played in front of a sellout crowd of 59,020 fans. Attendance will be the second highest total in Impact history, surpassing its Champions League match from 2009 vs. Santos Laguna (55,571), and its inaugural MLS home opener in 2012 vs. the Chicago Fire (58,912).
The Impact could still make more tickets available to break its attendance record of 60,860 (vs. LA Galaxy in 2012).
FIFA World Club Cup berth at stake
The winner of this two-legged final will go on to represent CONCACAF and the 2015 FIFA World Club Cup this November in Japan, a tournament featuring all the top continental club champions in world soccer, including the winner of this year’s UEFA Champions League.
Soccer Central podcast: SPORTSNET.CA’s Soccer Central podcast, hosted by John Molinaro and James Sharman, takes an in-depth look at the beautiful game and offers timely and thoughtful analysis on the sport’s biggest issues. To listen and subscribe to the podcast, CLICK HERE.
