Nick De Santis was coaching his 100th regular season game as the head coach of the Montreal Impact. His record is now 58 wins, 18 losses and 24 ties.
“Tonight you saw two very organized teams," said head coach De Santis. “This game was very tight and we had the most opportunities, but it didn’t want to go in. This was a high level game. We created occasions, but the Whitecaps didn’t give us any space to move behind them. We had greater scoring chances on the second half. You understand why these two teams are on top of the league standings. This was a very positive game in general.”
With the tie, the Impact remains in second place overall in USL D1 standings, with 15 points, three points behind the Whitecaps.
Goalkeeper Matt Jordan signed his fourth career shutout with the Impact and remains undefeated in seven games (4-0-3).
Defender Gabriel Gervais and midfielder Antonio Ribeiro are currently with the Canadian national team for the next CONCACAF Gold Cup.
“We had to step up on the defense, as one of our best defenders in the team, Gabriel Gervais, was abroad representing Canada," said defender Andres Arango. “This was probably one of the best teams this year in the league. I would say that Sebrango is one of the hardest strikers in the league to mark. We will get them next time for sure.”
For the fourth time in club history, the team is undefeated in its first seven games of the season. The club had previously achieved this feat in 1998 (7-0), 2004 (6-0-1) and 2005 (4-0-3).
Montreal, which is playing a six-game stretch at home, will play two games next week. The club will face the Minnesota Thunder on Tuesday (19h, CJAD 800, USLlive.com) and the Portland Timbers on Friday (20h, CJAD 800, Télévision de Radio-Canada, FSW, Sirius).
HIGHLIGHTS
14th minute –Whitecaps forward Eduardo Sebrango deflected a free kick from forward Alfredo Valente with a header, in the hands of Impact goalkeeper Matt Jordan, who made the save by diving on the ground.
20th minute – After a centering pass from Mathew Palleschi deep on the right wing, forward Charles Gbeke headed the ball squarely on the crossbar.
39th minute – Midfielder Leonardo Di Lorenzo’s centers the ball across the mouth of the net and finds Gbeke who heads the ball high, but Whitecaps goalkeeper Tony Caig made a reflex save to block the ball with his fists.
81th minute – Whitecaps forward Joey Gjertsen took a hard low shot from inside the box but Matth Jordan dived to his left to make the save.
87th – On a corner kick for the Whitecaps, Leonardo Di Lorenzo partially blocked the shot and the ball bounced off the post. Di Lorenzo then cleared the ball.
90th minute – In the final seconds of the game with the Impact pressuring, defender Hicham Aaboubou headed the ball from the top of the box. Goalkeeper Tony Caig made a partial save and the ball bounced off the crossbar. The ball returned to Aaboubou who headed the ball again, this time to the far left corner, but the shot was blocked by a Whitecaps defender on the line.
MISSING FROM THE LINE-UP
Player – Position – Injury – Status - Games missed
Mauro Biello Midfielder Right thigh Day to day 2
Nevio Pizzolitto Defender Knee Approx. 1 month 7
Jason DiTullio Defender Knee Return unknown 7
Shaun Tsakiris Midfielder Groin Return unknown 7
NEXT GAMES
Date – Teams – Stadium - Time
• Tuesday June 5 - Minnesota @ Impact - Claude-Robillard Sports Complex – 7 pm (CJAD 800, USLlive.com)
• Friday, June 8 – Portland @ Impact – Claude-Robillard Sports Complex – 8 pm (Télévision de Radio-Canada, FSW, Sirius, CJAD 800)
GAME SUMMARY
-30-
Source : Patrick Vallée, Montreal Impact
Info : 514-328-3668 Ext. 27
