THE GAME AT A GLANCE
• During its last game, Friday, against Rochester, goals by Charles Gbeke (70th minute) and defender Gabriel Gervais (73rd minute) led the Impact to a 2-0 win against the Raging Rhinos.
• With 44 points, the Impact is one point behind first place in the United Soccer Leagues First Division standings, held by the Seattle Sounders.
• The Impact, which has lost only once on the road so far this season, has not lost in its last seven games (5-0-2).
• Montreal has not allowed a goal in its last five games. The opponent was shut out in the last 508 minutes of play. The Impact conceded its last goal on August 1, in a 4-1 win against the Carolina RailHawks.
• The Impact has a 12-0-2 record when it scores the first goal in a game.
• The Impact is still undefeated this season (9-0-4) when defender Gabriel Gervais starts the game.
• It is the fourth and last game between both teams this season.
• Earlier this season, the Impact and the RailHawks tied 2-2, July 8, in Sherbrooke. The Impact then shut out the RailHawks 1-0, Juy 13, in Carolina, and registered a 4-1 win against the RailHawks, August 1, at Claude-Robillard Sports Complex.
THE OPPONENT
• This is the 25th game of the season for the RailHawks.
• During their last game, the RailHawks tied 0-0 with the Atlanta Silberbacks, last August 17.
• The Railhawks are 10th in the USL D1 standings.
• Forward Connally Edozien leads the RailHawks with seven goals and 15 points.
PRE-GAMES COMMENTS
DEFENDER GABRIEL GERVAIS
“The key to our success for the past games is that we are taking the lead and then teams have to open their game. With the players we have, our counter-attacks are very dangerous. Our level of play is currently where it should be. Our confidence is even better than before. It’s good because we stay close to Seattle in the standings. Now, with the three points in bank, regardless of what happens on Sunday, we will have acquired a good result during this trip.”
MIDFIELDER MATTHEW PALLESCHI
“We’ve been playing great soccer. The chemistry is very good right now and everyone is playing for one another. A lot of teams are scared of us now because we just beat two of the best teams in the league in Rochester and Vancouver. We have a lot of depth on the bench, so it’s positive for the remainder of the season. We’re getting ready for the playoffs and we are still looking into finishing first in the standings.”
OTHER FACTS
• Goalkeeper Jon Paul Piques, defenders Hicham Aaboubou and Alex Surprenant, midfielders Antonio Ribeiro and David Testo (personal reasons) did not travel with the team.
• Midfielders Patrick Leduc (2035) and Leonardo Di Lorenzo (2004) have reached the 2000 minutes played mark this season. Leduc succeeded this feat for the second time in his career, while it is Di Lorenzo’s first time.
• The Impact has a 5-0-1 record since the July 30 roster freeze in the United Soccer Leagues First Division.
• Defender Mauricio Vincello is one game away from the 100 career games played with the Impact. He will be the 12th player in club history to reach this mark.
• The Impact is leader in "on the road" league statistics: most goals scored (25 points), most wins (7), best average for goals scored (1.42), least defeats (1), least times shut out (1), most shutouts (6).
• Playoff bound: The first eight out of 12 teams in the standings will take part in the playoffs and unlike last year, a bye will no longer be awarded for finishing first or second. The top seeded team will square off against the eighth, the second against the seventh – and so on – in a home and away series on total goals scored. The quarterfinal games should be played September 14 and 16. After the quarterfinal round, teams will be reseeded according to their place in the final standings, with the top remaining seeds playing against the lowest ones. The semi-final games should be played September 21 and 23. The single-game championship final will take place September 29.
PLAYER INJURIES
Player - Position – Injury – Status – Games missed
Mauro Biello Midfielder Elbow Approx. 3 weeks 1
Hicham Aaboubou Defender Achilles tendon Day to day 1
Antonio Ribeiro Midfielder Groin Day to day 3
Frederico Moojen Forward Sports hernia Season over 3
Jason DiTullio Defender Knee Season over 24
ELSEWHERE IN THE LEAGUE
• Sunday, August 26, 2007 – Portland @ Puerto Rico – Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium – 6 pm
• Sunday, August 26, 2007 – Charleston @ Seattle – Qwest Field – 8 pm
NEXT GAMES
• Friday, August 31, 2007 – Rochester @ Impact – Claude-Robillard Sports Complex – 8 pm (Radio-Canada, FSW, Sirius, CJAD 800)
• Wednesday, September 5 – Atlanta @ Impact – Claude-Robillard Sports Complex – 7 pm (Radio-Canada, Sirius, CJAD, USLlive.com)
• Saturday, September 8 – Impact @ Rochester – Paetec Park – 7:35 pm (Radio-Canada, Sirius, CJAD, USLlive.com)
(End of regular season)
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Source: Patrick Vallée, Montreal Impact
Info: 514-328-3668, ext. 27
