The victory allowed Montreal to remain undefeated in six games (4-0-2) and to clinch its fourth win of the season.
Rhinos midfielder Shaun Tsakiris opened the score at the 26th minute of play. Tsakiris recuperated a ball from 20 yards out and one-timed a shot just beneath the crossbar, beating Impact goalkeeper Greg Sutton.
It was the first goal scored on Sutton in 456 minutes of play. It was also the first time this season the Montreal squad allowed the first goal and trailed in a game.
Substituted into the game at the 51st minute for Kevin Wilson, Montreals latest acquisition Ali Gerba didnt take much time to make his presence felt.
At the 60th minute, after a centering pass by Lars Lyssand, defender Nevio Pizzolitto handed a short pass to Gerba in the box, who easily completed the play to score the equalizer.
Gerba then scored the winning goal at the 85th minute of play on a deep through ball from Patrick Leduc. The former Lynx player took a shot from 16 yards that beat Rhinos goalkeeper Scott Vallow to to his left.
The Rhinos had almost doubled their lead at the 28th minute but Rey Martinezs low shot rang off the left post.
The Impact returns to Montreal undefeated after six games on the road. The team will play its 12th home-opener in club history, Sunday, May 29th, at 4:00 pm, against the Rochester Rhinos, at the Claude-Robillard Sports Complex (CKAC, CJAD).
COMMENTS
Impact head coach : "The second half was amazing. We put a lot of pressure on their defenders and it paid off. Ali Gerba played an excellent match. We inserted him in the lineup for his presence on the field and for his stature, so he could take advantage of long balls. He answered the call. We wanted a positive result to get even more confidence for our home-opener on Sunday."
Ali Gerba: "It's always easier when you get perfect balls played to you in the key areas of the field. I did my job and I was opportunistic. I'm very happy because I couldnt hope for a better start with my new team."
Patrick Leduc: " Every time we come to Rochester we have to weather the storm. When it passes, we become very dangerous. In the first half we were rather passive, but after our first goal, we were solid. It's extremely satisfying."
GOALS
ROC : Shaun Tsakiris 26
MTL : Ali Gerba (Nevio Pizzolitto) 60
MTL: Ali Gerba (Patrick Leduc) 85
IMPACT LINE-UP
Greg Sutton, Mauricio Vincello, Gabriel Gervais (Adam Braz 56), Lars Lyssand, Nevio Pizzolitto, Masahiro Fukasawa, Patrick Leduc, Zé Roberto, Mauro Biello (Antonio Ribeiro 87), Eduardo Sebrango, (Mesut Mert 90), Kevin Wilson (Ali Gerba 51)
RHINOS LINE-UP
Scott Vallow, Jason Perry, Scott Schweitzer, Frankie Sanfillippo, Tenywa Bonseu, Rey Martinez, Shaun Tsakiras (Lenin Steenkamp 80), Stoian Mladenov (Johnny Mitchell 69), Johnny Steele, Jonathan Bolanos, Tony Rougier (Doug Miller 77)
GOALS MTL 9 ROC 8
SAVES MTL 1 ROC 4
FOULS MTL 16 ROC 24
OFFSIDES MTL 5 ROC 1
CORNERS MTL 3 ROC 6
CAUTIONS
ROC: Shaun Tsakiris 26
ROC : Rey Martinez 42
MTL: Ali Gerba 71
ROC: Scott Schweitzer 75
REFEREES
Elias Bazkos, Vladimir Fabre, Andrew Adelman, Franco Bevilacqua
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Source: Patrick Vallée
Info: 514-328-3668 (poste 27)