VANCOUVER, BC - Vancouver Whitecaps FC fell 4-2 against Canadian rivals Montreal Impact in a testy affair that saw both clubs reduced to 10 men at BC Place on Sunday evening.
The ‘Caps started off the match hot with a perfectly-weighted David Milinković through ball to a streaking Theo Bair down the right side of the pitch. Bair dribbled forward into the right of the box, besting two defenders and shot a low ball from a tight angle into the bottom left corner of the net to beat out Clément Diop to the far post in the seventh minute. Bair’s first goal of the season put Vancouver up early but that lead was short-lived as Montreal responded with an Orji Okwonkwo goal in the eight minutes later.
The remainder of the first half was marked by a back-and-forth style of play as Vancouver and Montreal combined for 15 shots with the Impact going ahead right before the halftime whistle. Goalkeeper Thomas Hasal's reaching hands clipped Romell Quioto in the box in added time, leading to a Saphir Taïder penalty shot to put the Impact up 2-1 at the half.
The following half proved difficult for Vancouver as Lucas Cavallini was ejected from the game for a second yellow card in the 57th minute and Montreal padded their lead with two goals in the 51st and 60th minutes via a pair of Samuel Piette and Romell Quioto tap-ins. That wouldn’t stop the ‘Caps from fighting, however, as Vancouver claimed a late goal in the 66th minute from a driven cross in from Cristián Gutiérrez on the left side of the pitch that deflected off the foot of Montreal’s Rudy Camacho for an own goal.
The two sides played the final 18 minutes of regulation with 10 men each after Emanuel Maciel was ejected with a straight red card.
The 'Caps and Impact meet again on Wednesday, September 16 to round out the Canadian phase of the MLS continuation of play. Kickoff at BC Place is set for 6:30 p.m. PT live on TSN1 and TSN Radio 1040.
Stay tuned to whitecapsfc.com for the latest news and updates.
MATCH DETAILS
VWFC Man of the Match: David Milinković
Referee: Pierre-Luc Lauziere
Scoring Summary
7’ – VAN – Theo Bair (David Milinković, Michael Baldisimo)
15’ – MTL – Orji Okwonkwo (Saphir Taider)
45’+1' – MTL – Saphir Taider (penalty kick)
51’ – MTL – Samuel Piette (Saphir Taider, Orji Okwonkwo)
60’ – MTL – Rommell Quioto (Samuel Piette, Zachary Brault-Guillard)
66’ – VAN – Rudy Camacho (own goal)
Statistics
Possession: VAN 47.6% – MTL 52.4%
Shots: VAN 13 – MTL 18
Shots on Goal: VAN 6 – MTL 7
Saves: VAN 3 – MTL 4
Fouls: VAN 18 – MTL 16
Offsides: VAN 1 – MTL 1
Corners: VAN 6 – MTL 4
Cautions
24’ – VAN – Lucas Cavallini
57’ – VAN – Lucas Cavallini
59’ – MTL – Luis Binks
67’ – VAN – Cristian Dájome
74’ – VAN – Michael Baldisimo
86’ – VAN – Fredy Montero
Ejections
57’ – VAN – Lucas Cavallini
72’ – MTL – Emanuel Maciel
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
51.Thomas Hasal; 22.Érik Godoy (28.Jake Nerwinski 55'), 15.Andy Rose, 13.Derek Cornelius, 53.Ali Adnan (3.Cristián Gutiérrez 55'); 17.Leonard Owusu (11.Cristian Dájome 55'), 55.Michael Baldisimo, 31.Russell Teibert ©; 7.David Milinković (29.Yordy Reyna 73'); 14.Theo Bair (12.Fredy Montero 55'), 9.Lucas Cavallini
Substitutes not used
1.Bryan Meredith, 4.Ranko Veselinović, 27.Ryan Raposo, 32.Patrick Metcalfe
Montreal Impact
23.Clément Diop; 15.Zachary Brault-Guillard, 4.Rudy Camacho, 5.Luis Binks, 22.Jukka Raitala ©; 2.Victor Wanyama, 25.Emanuel Maciel; 6.Samuel Piette, 8.Saphir Taider, 18.Orji Okwonkwo (28.Shamit Shome 90'); 30.Rommell Quioto (21.Lassi Lappalainen 86')
Substitutes not used
1.Evan Bush, 7.Rod Fanni, 9.Bojan, 14.Amar Sejdic, 16.Joel Waterman, 24.Karifa Yao, 26.Jorge Corrales
