CF Montreal will look to extend their unbeaten streak to three games and keep their postseason hopes alive when they take on the visiting Chicago Fire on Saturday.
Montreal (7-12-10, 31 points) is currently in 13th place in the Eastern Conference, but just two points below the MLS Cup Playoff line.
Montreal overcame a 2-0 halftime deficit to earn a point on Wednesday in a 2-2 draw with the New England Revolution.
“I thought they were admirable,” said Montreal coach Laurent Courtois. “Was it perfect? ​​No. But they were impressive with a sense of closing gaps and compensating for their teammates, and the tracking of the defender was impressive. A couple of good, high-level moves, too.”
Sunusi Ibrahim has paced Montreal this season with six goals in 23 games, while Josef Martinez has eight goals (five goals and three assists) in 18 games.
Saturday concludes the season series between the two clubs. Chicago and Montreal met in the Windy City on March 16, with the Fire scoring twice after 90 minutes to win 4-3.
The Fire (7-15-8, 29 points) have just one win in their last six games (1-4-1) and enter Saturday’s action in 14th place in the East, two points behind Montreal.
Chicago beat Nashville SC 1-0 on Wednesday. With four games remaining, the Fire are four points below the play-off line.
“They scored a goal, but we took the whole second half where we were. We had the ball, but the pace of play should have been better. When you have ten guys behind the ball, you have to move the ball quickly,” said Chicago coach Frank Klopas.
“It’s always difficult when you’re on the road and you concede the first goal.”
Hugo Cuypers has a team-leading 10 goals in 29 games this season and Brian Gutierrez has nine goals (six goals and three assists) in 28 outings for Chicago.
–Field Level Media