CF Montreal ended their season with a fairly easy 3-1 win over Inter Miami CF in Florida. The Quebec club finished second in the MLS Eastern Conference standings and meet Orlando City SC in the playoffs.
Thus, CF Montreal clinched yet another win abroad, in front of an unmotivated Inter Miami, even though they played at home. Phil Neville’s men seemed content with qualifying for the playoffs and faltered early in the game after Montreal’s two quick goals.
However, as Sunday progressed the odds leaned more in the direction of a showdown with Columbus Crew, who are never easy rivals and got away with Orlando. But that all changed when Florida scored in the 84th minute to give them a 2-1 lead they held until the end to secure the last East playoff ticket.
And this season, there are several playoff regulars who failed to qualify. I’m thinking in particular of Toronto FC, New England Revolution and The Crew. This opens the door for teams like CF Montreal who will look to do something that hasn’t been done since its early days in MLS, which is to go all the way.
XI starts clear
Heading into the playoffs, CF MTL’s starting XI looks very obvious in defense with Rudy Camacho, Kamal Miller, Joel Waterman and Alistair Johnston. Then Lassi Lappalainen, Samuel Piette, Victor Wanyama, Djordje Mihailovic in the middle. Romell Quioto up front and James Pantemis in goal.
The only decision head coach Wilfried Nancy has to make is whether to field Ismaël Koné or Kei Kamara.
In addition, CF Montreal have the advantage of having players who, although not in the starting XI, can have a significant influence on the outcome of a game. There is depth.
Wilfried Nancy’s men go into the playoffs with unshakable confidence and I think this is the best opportunity for CF Montreal to succeed. And not just to skip a round, but to lift the big cup aloft.
more stress
With the playoffs, the stress on the team and the fans will increase exponentially. In fact, CF Montreal have had a great regular season and expectations are high, even if the Montreal club aren’t favorites like Philadelphia Union or FC Los Angeles.
But if CF MTL continues to do the right things and perform well on the field, they have a very good chance of going all the way. So, as usual, he has to constantly press, control possession and be the boss on the field.
The prescription has been applied and is here. There are no secrets.
But in the playoffs, you don’t score in style. The club need to find a way to win while still doing what they’ve been doing all season. However, he still has to increase his level in all phases of the game.
It’s possible against Orlando. But you still have to do the right things.