P osted by

George Menexis ,

August 17, 2014 Email

George Menexis



Twitter

@menexisbro Read this on your iPhone/iPad or Android device



The moment Montreal fans have been waiting for has finally arrived; Ignacio Piatti will start his first game as a Montreal Impact. The moment came with its share of drama and complications. San Lorenzo was set to play in the second leg of the final of the Copa Libertadores, and although the Impact were willing to let the Argentinean play in the final, FIFA put their foot down. Still, Piatti was all smiles on Thursday’s press conference following San Lorenzo’s win in the second leg to win the Copa Libertadores. He will start today against the Fire, sporting arguably the most important number in soccer, the number 10. “I’m very happy that San Lorenzo won the Copa Libertadores,” Piatti told reporters. “It was a dream that has finally come true. I saw the game last night and congratulated my teammates. “But now, I’m here in Montreal, and I want to do everything so the team goes well.” Klopas will be hoping that the arrival of a new designated player will give life to an Impact team that is riding a seven-game losing streak. Although it takes players new to the MLS time to adapt to this style of play, Piatti’s quality on the ball should give the Impact the boost they’re so desperately seeking. They face a Chicago team that is facing an equally difficult season, with only four wins. Still, Chicago’s tendency to tie a lot of games means that they’re only two little points out of a playoff spot, so they’ll have everything to play for tonight at Saputo Stadium.



The Opening 45

Evan Bush gets the start today after Perkins guarded the net in the past few games. But his failure to really shine as the Impact continued to lose means Klopas will juggle his goalies a little more often for the remainder of the season. Piatti got his first taste of offense early in the game after Marco Di Vaio sprung the Argentinean down the right side of the pitch, bringing the fans at Saputo on their feet. However, as he inched his way closer, he was quickly neutralized and the play continued. Di Vaio and Piatti connected well again a few minutes later down that left side, and were producing quality offense together as the first wore on. It’s an encouraging sign for the Impact to see their two star players connecting so early into their first game together. "We tried to find each other and make a couple of combinations," said Di Vaio. "It's not easy for him because he's arriving in a team that has a lot of confidence issues." In the 17th minute, Di Vaio made his way into the box from the right side but was fouled right inside the box. Despite the crowd’s loud protests, his whistle stayed down and the play continued. No team really managed to cleanly break in just yet, although Montreal had an edge in possession and offensive flare 20 minutes in. Still that final shot remained elusive. Chicago was doing a good job in neutralizing the midfield, in particular Piatti. Half an hour in, both teams were still looking for the opening goal in a half that was not producing many quality scoring chances on either side. Chicago was starting to break out more often now, pushing the Montreal defense deeper down towards Bush. Still the quality scoring chances were elusive. In the 38th minute, Chicago got their best chance from Palmer’s low cross into the box. Evan Bush neutralized the cross but it slipped and went towards the net, until Camara intervened and cleared it. The rainy weather in Montreal almost cost the Impact a very unlucky goal. The Impact’s promising start was just a shadow of their game as the half was coming to a close. Although they held strong defensively, there was no attacking flare, and Piatti had failed to produce much, let alone touch the ball often. The Argentinean got the ball in front of the box from Mapp in the 45th, but was tackled to the ground violently right outside the box. To the fans outrage, nothing was called. The half came to an end, the game still scoreless. @divaio9 you showed you still have enough battery to keep going for another season. You and #Piatti showed chemistry this evening. #IMFC — Dani Szwarc (@DanitoSzwarc) August 17, 2014

Felt great to grab the ever elusive 3 points tonight. Worked hard as a group and The ball FINALLY bounced our way. Big step for us #IMFC — Heath Pearce (@HeathGPearce) August 17, 2014

The Second Half

Felipe came in for Bernier to start the second, and considering the fact that the captain had a decent half, one would hope that it wasn’t due to injury. Piatti moved into a more central role for the start of the second, Klopas hoping this small adjustment would mean Piatti gets more of the ball. To everyone’s surprise and slight disappointment, Piatti was next to be taken off in the 54th for Andres Romero. Questions will be asked as to why Bernier and Piatti were taken off in a 0-0 the Impact still had a great chance of winning. On a positive note, Romero has been at the top of his game as of late, and could be a difference maker. That’s exactly what Romero did. Some pretty passing in the 60th between Di Vaio, Felipe and Romero gave Felipe the chance to send Romero on the partial break down the left and he was off. With speed and control, he ran in towards the middle, but he was quickly closed down by the defense, and his shot was easily stopped and held onto by Johnson. A nice pass by Miller over everyone to Romero down the line gave the Impact another good chance to breakthrough first, but Romero’s low cross to Duka was badly controlled, and the ball was cleared for a corner. On the ensuing corner, the ball was headed strongly over the net. With only 15 minutes remaining, Montreal had most of the momentum and was getting the better chances. Chicago had most of their team defending, choosing to attack in waves of three or four players when they did get out of their zone. Sitting only two points out, the Fire were willing to come out with a point instead of risk getting caught. Chicago had one of their chances in the 80th minute, when a speedy Nyassi made his way into the box, past a few defenders, but a streaking Camara came to the rescue, his risky tackle spot on to kick the ball out for a corner. The first goal of the match finally came in the 84th minute, and it was the Impact that got it. Eric Miller started the attack on the left side, passing it to Tissot and continuing his run. He was sent down the line dangerously. Making his way nicely into the box, he passed the ball back to Di Vaio, who made no mistake and fired it into the far corner. The Impact was now just four minutes away from ending their seven game losing streak. In stoppage time, Evan Bush saved the day for the Impact. Off the ensuing corner, the ball bounced around and was headed on net from the six-yard box, but Evan Bush was in perfect position to stop the header. "It feels good," said head coach Frank Klopas. "It took us a while to feel like this. There’s a lot of games that we could have walked away with points, but you need to move forward. Today was a good overall performance by the group. The subs we made gave us a lot of added energy at the right time."



Man of the Match





Eric Miller

In a game with a lack of offensive opportunities for both teams, Eric Miller and the Montreal defense had a great game and were successful in neutralizing the Fire. Miller was not only perfect defensively, but was also very present offensively down that left side. It was his run and pass to Di Vaio that led to the only goal of the match. He gets man of the match in my books. Honourable Mention

Camara also had a good game. His signature risky tackles were on point tonight, a particularly good one on Nyassi in the second when he was coming in on Bush. Romero only played most of the second half, but his presence was immediately felt until the end of the game. The Argentinean continues his amazing season, and will hope to do so in the Champions game against C.D. Fas on Wednesday night in El Salvador. Who was your Man of the Match?

Montreal Impact Line-up

30 Evan Bush

6 Hassoun Camara

55 Wandrille Lefevre

13 Matteo Ferrari

3 Eric Miller

21 Justin Mapp

8 Patrice Bernier

10 Ignacio Piatti

33 Gorka Larrea

11 Dilly Duka

9 Marco Di Vaioi



Substitutions: (46) Felipe for Bernier; (54) Romero for Piatti; (74) Tissot for Mapp