

Posted by

Kamal Hylton ,

March 13, 2014 Email

Kamal Hylton

On Twitter:

@KamalHylton

First Thoughts

A brace from FC Dallas midfielder Mauro Diaz saw the Montreal Impact endure their first loss of the season by a 3-2 score line.



With the first goal coming in controversial fashion with Jeb Brovsky being called for a rather dubious foul on the Argentine, the eventual winner came courtesy a curling free kick over the wall and past a goalkeeper Troy Perkins.



Now the Impact make a short trip to Houston, Texas and BBVA Compass Stadium to take on the Houston Dynamo in a rematch of the 2013 MLS Playoff Wild Card game, a physical match that ended 3-0 to the hosts and that currently sees Marco Di Vaio, Andres Romero and Nelson Rivas serving suspensions.



Houston are coming in as a confident bunch after one of the biggest results of MLS First Kick, defeating the New England Revolution by a whopping score of 4-0 and in the process sending an early message to the rest of the Western Conference.



Keep Thinking

Although the main talking point after the match was the penalty call, for an opening game of the season there were some positives to take away for the Impact.



Mainly, those positives came in form of the performances of midfielders Felipe, Justin Mapp and Andrew Wenger.



Montreal's Brazilian playmaker showed shades of his 2012 form with his ability to set the tempo and create chances for his teammates, including a headed goal by Wenger that would make the suspended Marco Di Vaio proud.



Something else was the play of Mapp, whom picked up right where he left off last season providing quality in wide positions, punctuated by his set up of Sanna Nyassi's opening goal.



If there's one area coach Frank Klopas will want to adjust ahead the Dynamo game it's keeping his side from sitting too deep. Dallas were able to take advantage of wide areas through Diaz and midfielder Fabian Castillo, involve fullbacks Jair Benitez and Kellyn Acosta and make use forward Blas Perez's size and strength.



After struggling for form at the tail end of last season, Houston and coach Dominic Kinnear will be overjoyed at how forward Will Bruin has started the 2014 season with a bang, scoring two of the team’s three first half goals, as those three first half goals came within the first 23 minutes of the game.



They were also against the New England Revolution, a team that is the preseason MLS Cup pick of many (myself included) and that boasts the 2013 Defensive Player of the Year Jose Goncalves. The Portuguese central defender was made to look pedestrian by a very underrated Dynamo attack.



If there's one player the Montreal Impact defensive unit will need to keep an eye on it's Oscar Boniek Garcia. The Honduran international can prove to be difficult and the versatile nature of his game allows him to be able to play wide or centrally. It will be interesting to see how Kinnear chooses to deploy Boniek Garcia and captain Brad Davis. With Montreal playing a rookie fullback in Eric Miller, the combination of those two players along with overlapping runs by one of the better MLS fullback duos in Corey Ashe and Kofie Sarkodie could give the hosts the upper hand.



Final Thoughts

It would be foolish to take a lot out of the results from the first few weeks of the season. However, with their home opener fast approaching, Montreal setting groundwork in this match will be crucial.



Fans of the Montreal Impact knew this was going to be a tough opening stretch of games. Going to BBVA Compass Stadium is never an easy task and, although many of the players will have revenge on their minds, a draw is probably the best they can hope for.



Prediction

Montreal Impact 1-1 Houston Dynamo