CF Montreal have an opportunity to clinch their first MLS playoff berth since 2020 when they welcome the Columbus Crew to Saputo Stadium on Friday.
The home side need just a single point to assure their place in the postseason, while the Crew have a little more work to do, currently sixth in the Eastern Conference, two points above the playoff line.
Match preview
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Just days after they were shut down by the New York Red Bulls in a 1-0 defeat, Montreal looked to be headed towards a second straight loss this past weekend, trailing 2-0 to Toronto in the Canadian Classique after seven minutes.
Some intelligent build-up play, combined with an error from TFC goalkeeper Alex Bono, helped swing the momentum in favour of the Quebecers, and by half time, Montreal found themselves in front, becoming the first side in league history to erase a two-goal deficit to lead at the interval, eventually winning 4-3.
That was the third victory for them this year by a 4-3 score as they have now claimed 23 points this season after conceding the opening goal, while also setting a new club record for points in an MLS campaign (52), eclipsing the old mark from 2015 (51).
In his second year in charge, Wilfried Nancy has been able to count on consistent contributions from his star players, with his back-end also chipping in on a fairly regular basis, as 11 of this team's goals in 2022 have come from defenders.
Their ability to bounce back quickly from a shaky performance has been a staple of this group throughout the year, as they have not dropped more than two consecutive games since losing their opening three fixtures of the regular season.
While Montreal have already conceded one more goal than they did in their previous campaign (45 in 2022), this team seem to be at their best defensively when hosting the Crew.
They have posted six clean sheets versus Columbus at Saputo Stadium, failing to concede in their previous three home games against them.
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The Crew did virtually everything right last weekend except the most important thing, score, as they were stymied by the stellar goalkeeping of Gabriel Slonina, who stopped nine Columbus shots, helping the Chicago Fire to a 0-0 draw.
Since the end of May, Caleb Porter has seen a dramatic change in his team's form, with the Crew suffering only one defeat in their previous 16 MLS affairs, with that lone loss coming at home, 2-1 versus Montreal.
Those points gained could very well make the difference between them making or missing the playoffs come October, although the same could be said about their inability to claim more points of late as Columbus have drawn four of their last five games, squandering four points from winning positions.
On their current run, this team have relied heavily on a pair of deadly attacking options to remain hot, a formula which, for the time being, has kept them in a top seven position in the Eastern Conference.
Four of the final six matches for Columbus this season will be on the road, where the Crew are unbeaten in their last seven encounters.
They have won three of their four matches played this year versus Canadian teams, though they have only won one of their last seven visits to Montreal dating back to 2014.
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Team News
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Djordje Mihailovic, who will join AZ Alkmaar in the Dutch Eredivisie at the start of January, notched a career-high for goals in a season with his eighth in Montreal's victory over Toronto.
Kei Kamara had the winner on Sunday, his 136th all-time in MLS, with the other tallies coming courtesy of Kamal Miller and Alistair Johnston.
Victor Wanyama and Joel Waterman each had an assist in their triumph at BMO Field, while Samuel Piette gave away an early penalty after a needless challenge in the box in the early stages of that game.
James Pantemis conceded multiple goals in a match for the first time in his last four games, while their leading goalscorer Romell Quioto has not found the back of the net in consecutive fixtures.
Lassi Lappalainen sat out of their previous encounter because of an adductor strain, Ahmed Hamdy is still dealing with a problem in his right leg and Tomas Giraldo has a foot injury.
For a second successive encounter, the Columbus back four of Steven Moreira, Jonathan, Milos Degenek and Will Sands held the opposition to just a single shot on target, helping goalkeeper Eloy Room collect his second shutout in as many games this past weekend.
Lucas Zelarayan and Cucho Hernandez have accounted for 16 of the 37 Crew goals scored this season, with the 2020 MLS Cup MVP also tied with Luis Diaz and Derrick Etienne for the most assists on the team (five).
Zelarayan is listed as questionable with a right thigh injury, while Pedro Santos will likely be on the bench for another encounter as he is suffering from the same issue.
CF Montreal possible starting lineup:
Pantemis; Miller, Camacho, Waterman; Choiniere, Piette, Kone, Johnston; Mihailovic; Quioto, Kamara
Columbus Crew possible starting lineup:
Room; Moreira, Jonathan, Degenek, Sands; Artur; Nagbe; Diaz, Zelarayan, Etienne; Hernandez
We say: CF Montreal 2-0 Columbus Crew
You would think that Zelerayan is far too valuable to the Crew's success to sit out of a match with so much at stake at this stage of the season.
However, if he plays, and is not 100% as reports suggest, chances could be hard to come by for a Columbus side who filter most of their attacks through the 30-year-old Armenian international.
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