3 goals, 1 shutout, 1 potential Goal Of The Week nominee and 1 potential Save Of The Week nominee . It almost seems like business as usual for the Montreal Impact at Stade Saputo. Stade Saputo , aka the fortress, was packed at full capacity with 20,011 members of La Garde / Le 12e Joueur. The Ultras were as loud and passionate as usual giving a nice tempo to Stade Saputo, something that the Impact players must enjoy.

Ben Olsen, D.C. United head coach, surprisingly rotated (more than expected) his team. Dwayne De Rosario, Chris Pontius and Branko Boscovic started the game on the bench. Still ,the first 20 minutes of the game were dominated by the visiting team. With smart pressing from the forwards and an inspired Perry Kitchen, the Impact had trouble finding the right rhythm.

More after the jump,



The Montreal Impact's reaction to those conditions is a true testament to the team's character and the quality of its individuals. At the 24th minute, Patrice Bernier received a ball from Lamar Neagle and found a lot of space in front of him. Just outside the left box, Bernier runs towards the box , without real pressure, and gives a through ball to Marco Di Vaio, who made a run in the box. Three seconds later, Di Vaio curls a shot to the top right corner for his third MLS goal of the season.

Early in the second half , at the 49th minute, Collen Warner got the team a penalty kick when he was tripped on the box. It was the result of an excellent play on the right side with Jeb Brosvky delivering the cross towards Warner. Bernier takes care of business, scoring his 6th penalty of the season (6 out of 6) beating Bill Hamid.

D.C. United was not out of the game even if the score was at 3-0. Perry Kitchen performed well in the 1st half and Andy Najar was always threat throughout the game.But as soon as the Bernier-Warner duo figured Kitchen-Saragosa in the midfield, this is when things got more interesting for the Montreal Impact. Bringing Boskovic, De Rosario and Pontius later in the 2nd half did not bring a lot even though a disallowed goal was called.

At the 82nd minute, Lewis Neal went for a loose ball to score DC's first goal but the goal was disallowed after Chris Pontius was whistled for a foul. A bit of controversy as replays show that it was Alessandro Nesta that shoved the Pontius into Troy Perkins.

Local boy Bernier takes care of business and seals the deal at the 92nd minute after a long smooth run on the left and beats Hamid on his right. Via the Montreal Impact,

Bernier becomes the first ever Impact player to have a multi-goal game in MLS, and has five games in which he's earned multiple points this season.



Troy Perkins

Newly-acquired goalkeeper Troy Perkins has already gotten his second consecutive shutout with the Montreal in his third win with the team. It was a quiet afternoon for the Ohio native but did manage to have one great save that will probably get nominated for Save Of The Week. Thank you again Gavin Wilkinson.





A Complete Game

It was a complete game for the whole squad and a real team effort. The E is not Expansion but for Evolution for this team and not recognizing what is happening with this team would not be fair to team and club alike. The happy contagion around the positive results for the club has spread to the staff, the media and the fans alike. The road to the playoffs is still long even if there are only 6 games left. The Impact will hope for some results going their way in the East but it's all about winning the next game for '' Les Bleus ''.

Post-Game quotes

credit and thanks for Arnaud sound to Olivier Tremblay





Collen Warner



Post-Game Video (provided by the Montreal Impact)