THE GAME AT A GLANCE
• During its last road trip, the Impact shut out the Rhinos in Rochester 2-0, last Friday, before losing 1-0 against the Carolina RailHawks, on Sunday.
• With 44 points, the Impact is four points behind first place in the United Soccer Leagues First Division standings, held by the Seattle Sounders.
• With a win Friday, the Impact would be guaranteed to finish among the top four teams in the standings, which would give the team home field advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
• Forward Charles Gbeke leads the Impact with 17 points (8-1-17). He is also first in goals (8), game-winning goals (4), shots (65) and fouls (43).
• Since 1996, the year Rochester joined the league, the Impact has a 23-12-5 lifetime record against the Rhinos. Rochester has won only once in Montreal, on June 14, 1998 and scored its last goal in Montreal on July 23, 2000 in a 3-1 Impact win.
• This is the third of four games between both clubs this season. On August 5, a goal from Charles Gbeke led the Impact to a 1-0 win against the Rhinos, in front of 11,587 spectators at Claude-Robillard Sports Complex.
• The two teams will face each other again on September 8, in Rochester.
THE OPPONENT
• This is the 27th game of the season for the Rhinos, which are playing their last three games of the season against Montreal.
• The Rhinos are first in the USL First Division in terms of goals scored with 37.
• Rochester is 4th in the USL D1 standings with 39 points, tied with the Atlanta Silverbacks and the Puerto Rico Islanders.
• Rookie forward Hamed Diallo leads the league with nine goals and is second in points, with 19.
PRE-GAMES COMMENTS
MIDFIELDER PATRICK LEDUC
“I’m sure that it will be a tight game because Rochester doesn’t want to lose a third game against us. They will probably regroup to try to limit our scoring chances. Even if during the last game they dominated at times, the Rhinos conceded too many opportunities. Some of their players should be back from injuries as well.”
FORWARD JOEY GJERTSEN
“It’s hard when you play a team that often, especially when it’s a quality team like Rochester. We could also face them in the playoffs again. But we have to approach this game like any other. I think we offer more qualities as a team than they do. So if we are at our best, I don’t think they can beat us.”
DEFENDER DAVID FRONIMADIS
“It’s always a big rivalry with Rochester. It will be another big game because having lost against Carolina, we want to come back with a win and not lose two games in a row. Obviously, they will come out strong because they have not scored a goal in the first two games against us. We are at home so we will try to come out with a big performance.”
OTHER FACTS
• After leaving his place to goalkeeper Andrew Weber, in the last game in Carolina, goalkeeper Matt Jordan should be back in nets tonight. Jordan, who played 16 games so far this season, has a 8-2-5 record and a goal against average of 0.645.
• Midfielder Matthew Palleschi and defender Nevio Pizzolitto are suspended and will miss the game against Rochester. Palleschi will serve a one-game suspension due to the red card he received in the last game. Pizzolitto has been suspended for one game following inappropriate behaviour during an altercation at the end of the game in Carolina.
• The Impact has a 12-0-2 record when it scores the first goal in a game.
• The Impact has a 5-1-1 record since the July 30 roster freeze in the United Soccer Leagues First Division.
• The Impact is only five goals from the 300-goal mark scored at home in club history (186 games).
• Almost 2000 fans from the Blainville Soccer Association and more than 2000 people from the St-Leonard Soccer Association will attend tonight’s game. Also, more than 500 members of the Connexion Impact-Saputo fan club will be present.
• 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
Nevio Pizzolitto Defender Thigh Approx 3 weeks 0
Andres Arango Defender Ribs Day to day 1
Mauro Biello Midfielder Elbow Approx. 2 weeks 2
Antonio Ribeiro Midfielder Groin Day to day 4
Frederico Moojen Forward Sports hernia Season over 4
Jason DiTullio Defender Knee Season over 25
ELSEWHERE IN THE LEAGUE
• Friday, August 31, 2007 – Minnesota @ Seattle– Qwest Field – 10:30 pm
NEXT GAMES
• 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
