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Montreal were readying themsevles to host one of the top offensive teams in the league. The game came in a moment of great sadness for both teams. For the Galaxy, DeLaGarza’s infant child died just a week after his birth. For Montreal, Karl Ouimette’s little sister passed away after a 12-year battle with cancer. Our deepest condolences to both these players.
"These are difficult moments," said head coach Frank Klopas. "Karl is part of this family and we, as a team, a club and a city, will offer him all the support he needs during this time." "It humbles you as a person to hear about these things," added Klopas. "Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family."
The Galaxy arrived Montreal on a five game win streak, and were set to move into first in the West with a win in Montreal. The Impact suffered an unfortunate 3-2 loss in Houston on Saturday on what was a very hot night.
This was also Landon Dolovan’s last game in Montreal, as he will be retiring at the end of the season, after being snubbed by the United States national team.
The Opening 45
The Piatti-Di Vaio duo wasted no time getting started. Darting through the middle, Piatti fed a beautiful through ball to Di Vaio. The Italian had a look and tried to go near side, but couldn’t sneak it in and hit the outside of the post.
Piatti really seems to be getting used to the MLS style of play these past few games, and will be looking to be dangerous tonight against an LA team that scores more than two goals a game on average.
In the 9th minute, Di Vaio this time ran in through the middle and found Romero wide who managed to evade the defender’s attention. He walked in and his shot was deflected by the keeper and went just wide. LA was choosing to play a three-man defense, and it was leaving a lot of space on the wings.
The Impact was playing a very high pressure game, giving the LA defenders no space, and in turn playing a very tight defense. With only three defenders, LA was having a hard time dealing with the waves of Montreal offense.
In the 18th minute, Donovan skipped around a few defenders, attracting them all to him and slickly fed Keane. His ensuing shot went just wide. Just a minute, Montreal earned a free kick in a very favorable position, but Felipe’s shot went into the wall.
Montreal’s pressure paid off in the 28th minute, and it did so beautifully. A well-constructed play starting with Felipe ended with Di Vaio tapping it in to an empty net. Felipe fed Piatti out wide. The Argentine beautifully fed Duka who was streaking in behind him with a no-look pass. Duka went to the line and found an unmarked Di Vaio, who had no trouble putting it away.
The Italian celebrated by going to his bench and embracing Karl Ouimette, who of course just lost his sister to cancer. This was an emotional game for the Impact, especially for Ouimette and his family.
34 minutes in, the crowd stood up and cheered as it was also Karl Ouimette’s number, and a tearful Ouimette stood up and applauded the crowd in this emotional moment for the player.
Keane came close to tying the game three minutes later. The Irishman found his way into the box from the left side and then went left, right, and left again, fooling the defenders and unleashing a powerful shot that was stopped by Bush.
On the stroke of halftime in the 43rd minute, the Impact made it a two-goal lead. On transition, Dilly Duka received the clearance, passed a player, and found Felipe alone running down the wing. The Brazilian patiently made his way in, fed Piatti, who side stepped a player and unleashed a bullet into the bottom corner. The Argentine now had four goals in his last three games.
The Impact would go into the break up 2-0 against one of the best teams in the league. Question is would they be able to maintain the lead in the second half. Four of Montreal’s five wins this season came when they were leading at halftime.
The Second Half
This was the first time in six matches the Galaxy has been held without a first half goal. Funny that it came against the Impact, who boasts the worst defensive record in the league.
Montreal started the half without the pressure they put on in the first, opting to try and maintain their lead instead of risk losing it. They shouldn’t let LA see too much space. The quality on that team shines more when their players have time on the ball.
In the 57th minute, Camara had to be taken after a collision with Leonardo left his elbow hurt. Karl Ouimette would replace Camara. As he came on, LA got one back. Juninho got the ball outside the box and decided to have a shot. His weak attempt found itself past everybody into Zardes’ feet, who one timed it in.
LA was on the press now. Just three minutes later, Rogers unleashed a shot on the half volley was finger tipped by Evan Bush just wide.
In the 64th, just two minutes later, it was the Galaxy substitute Gargas who found the back of the net. A soaring ball headed by Zardes gave Keane the opportunity to feed Gargas in the box, who one-timed it past Bush. Two goals in five minutes, and all of a sudden the Impact’s lead was done.
That seemed to be a wake-up call for the bleu-blanc-noir, and they started attacking and bringing their game out of their zone as of then. LA also fell back from their high pressure style that got them two goals, and the game fell much more in the balance.
With 10 minutes left, Felipe got a yellow card, which means that he would be suspended for a game and will miss their weekend game in New England. At least the Impact will have their captain Bernier back for that one.
The game would end in a 2-2 to draw, both teams earning themselves a point. The Impact could rejoice that they managed to tie one of the best teams in the league, but will be disappointed that they came close to getting three points. They play on Saturday in New England.
"We knew it was going to be an emotional match," said head coach Frank Klopas. "We are where we are right now and we won’t be giving up until the end. There`s a lot to play for right now and we have one of our biggest games of the year next week. We need all of our fans to be there for us. We need this place very loud because this isn't over yet."
"They are a good team, so even though we are disappointed with giving up a two-goal lead, we knew they were going to be dangerous offensively," said goalkeeper Evan Bush, who made two key stops in the 38th and 61st minutes. "We played hard against one of the best teams in the league and got a result."
Man of the Match
Karl Ouimette
This week’s man of the match goes to Karl Ouimette, who came and gave his all for the Impact in a time that is very emotional for him. It shows his dedication to the cub and his courage and strength as a person and a player. Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family.
Piatti continued his goal-streak and played yet another great game for the Impact. Not only does he bring a set of skills that are of great quality, but he also makes those around him much better, and improves the quality of the play in general when he’s on the ball. Di Vaio also had a good game, particularly in the first half. The Italian has a good work rate, but failed to put as much pressure on the defense in the second half.
"We are not satisfied because we were winning 2-0 in the first half," explained Di Vaio. "We could have scored a third goal, but I am happy because we played with the same intensity in the first and second half. We have been doing a lot better for the last month and a half so we know that we can take on these big teams. That's a positive thing, but we did want to win. We wanted to win this game for Karl and his family. We wanted to do a nice gesture for him and give them positive emotions in this hard time."
Montreal Line-up
Bush
Pearce
Miller
Ferrari
Camara
Felipe
Mallace
Piatti
Duka
Romero
Di Vaio
Montreal Impact substitutions
Ouimette for Camara, Tissot for Duka, Lefevre for Ferrari
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