For the third time this year, the Philadelphia Union and CF Montreal will face each other, this time with a place in the last 16 of the Leagues Cup at stake on Friday at Subaru Park.
Despite losing in a shootout versus Cruz Azul on Sunday, Philly finished on top of the East 4 table, setting up a showdown with Montreal, who defeated Atletico San Luis 3-2 to claim second place in East 2.
Match preview
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The Union only had one effort on target and 38% possession in their previous encounter, but it was enough to earn them a single point and finish first in their Leagues Cup group for a second consecutive season.
That was only the second time that they failed to emerge victorious from a home match in this competition, with the previous time being in the semi-finals last year versus Inter Miami (4-1).
Jim Curtin's men are a perfect 5-0 at this tournament when leading after 45 minutes, winning four of those encounters in normal time.
They are unbeaten in their previous four matches played across all competitions, with all of those encounters taking place at Subaru Park.
In two of their last three one-game elimination contests, the Union have managed to avoid defeat, winning only one of those instances within 90 minutes, against DC United on penalties in the 2023 Leagues Cup round of 32.
Philadelphia are undefeated in their last six home matches versus Montreal, though they failed to hang onto a 2-1 lead the previous time they faced them at Subaru Park in June (2-2 draw).
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Resilience has been a staple of this CF Montreal side over the past couple of months, losing consecutive matches just once since the beginning of June.
Le CFM are just a point below the Eastern Conference playoff line in MLS, claiming two victories domestically this season away from home.
Laurent Courtois saw a much different team against San Luis from the one that suffered a 4-1 defeat against Orlando City, scoring more goals in their previous Leagues Cup encounter than they had in the 2023 group phase (two).
Friday will mark their first knockout fixture in a continental tournament since making it to the quarter-finals of the 2020 CONCACAF Champions League.
This will only be the third time they face a Major League Soccer side at this tournament, with the Canadians losing those previous two encounters by a combined margin of 5-1.
Montreal are undefeated in their previous two meetings versus the Union but have not beaten them at Subaru Park since 2018 (4-1).
Team News
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Isaiah LeFlore missed the previous Union match with a knee injury, while Nathan Harriel and Jack McGlynn could both be back after the US Olympic team were eliminated in the quarter-finals.
On Tuesday, the club announced that they had signed CJ Olney to an extension until the 2028 season with an option for 2029.
Daniel Gazdag notched the equaliser two minutes before the 90 against Cruz Azul but was the only one to miss from the penalty spot, as his side dropped points for the first time in the Leagues Cup group phase.
Logan Ketterer sat out of another Montreal encounter last week with a sore ankle, and Lassi Lappalainen was an unused substitute after previously suffering a groin strain.
Two players for Le CFM made their first appearances at the 2024 Leagues Cup versus San Luis, with Jonathan Sirois replacing Sebastian Breza in goal and captain Samuel Piette coming on for Nathan-Dylan Saliba in the second half.
Tom Pearce gave them the lead after 17 minutes in their previous encounter, Matias Coccaro made it 2-0 a few minutes before the half-hour mark and Sunusi Ibrahim rounded out the scoring for them eight from before the 90.
Philadelphia Union possible starting lineup:
Blake; Mbaizo, Elliott, Glesnes, Wagner; Martinez; McGlynn, Flach; Gazdag; Baribo, Uhre
CF Montreal possible starting lineup:
Sirois; Corbo, Waterman, Alvarez; Ruan, Piette, Choiniere, Lappalainen; Duke, Martinez; Coccaro
We say: Philadelphia Union 1-0 CF Montreal
The Union have made their share of deep runs in major competitions, and that experience should come in handy ahead of another must-win situation on Friday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
