The ‘Caps continued their strong start to the season with a 2-0 win over CF Montreal at their temporary home stadium in Sandy, Utah on Saturday.
Here are four observations from the match.
Gardien de but
After coming back from a broken thumb last year, it’s official: Maxime Crépeau is back.
Montreal had scored in an MLS record 22 consecutive away matches.
That came to an end on Saturday, in big part due to their former player and proud Quebecer.
“I won’t lie to you, it feels really good,” said Crépeau on earning the win over his former club.
Crépeau came up huge on several occasions to preserve a second clean sheet in four matches, after just three in 23 matches for the team last year.
The Canadian keeper also recently made his World Cup qualifying debut, and could certainly push for more minutes with the national team over the coming months.
The man is good
Dear MLS writers, fans, and media: it’s time to start paying attention to Cristian Dájome.
What’s a man got to do to get some love in the weekly columns?
Dájo now has three goals in his last three matches, and another one in the opener that was called back. With his combination of speed and strength he is proving to be a constant threat.
MLS Team of the Week? Without question.
Midfield finding their groove
Caio Alexandre and Janio Bikel paired for their first start together as central midfielders. It was an adjustment that head coach made in the second half of last weekend’s match against Colorado Rapids.
While it’s an early sample size, with Caio still rounding into full form, there were promising signs from the duo.
Bikel continues to do well for the ‘Caps as a ball winner and cycler, while it’s clear that Caio likes to get on the ball and progress it forward. As the match opened up in the second half, their influence grew.
There was another positive as well with Leo Owusu making his first appearance of the season after returning from an injury. He had a very solid preseason and immediately showed his bite when he entered the match. He could be another great option for the ‘Caps coaching staff.
Pieces of me
Before you jump in with the “well they haven’t scored from open play” line, believe me, they know. Dos Santos said as much after the match.
“It’s something that we speak about every week and we try to be better,” noted the gaffer. “It’s going to take work and we have to keep pushing and looking at the video to try to improve.”
But what will please the group is the fact that they continue to find ways to score goals and win matches while finessing that part of their game.
The ‘Caps have now scored a set-piece goal in three of four matches, and really should have in the other against Colorado.
Solid organization, discipline, and set piece success is a tried and true recipe for success. Long may it continue.
