Montreal aiming to extend ‘impressive’ form vs. Fire
Mar 16, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Fire FC defender Rafael Czichos (5) and CF Montreal forward Sunusi Ibrahim (14) battle for a ball during the first half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images CF Montreal will look to extend their unbeaten streak to three games and keep their postseason hopes alive when against the visiting Chicago Fire on Saturday.
Montreal (7-12-10, 31 points) is currently 13th in the Eastern Conference, but just two points below the MLS Cup Playoff line.
Montreal erased a 2-0 halftime deficit to salvage a point in Wednesday’s 2-2 draw with the New England Revolution.
“I thought they were impressive,” said Montreal coach Laurent Courtois. “Is it perfect? No. But they were impressive in the sense of covering the gaps and compensating for their teammates, and the tracking of the individual defending was impressive. A couple of good, quality actions, too.”
Sunusi Ibrahim has paced Montreal this season with six goals in 23 matches, while Josef Martinez has eight goal contributions (five goals and three assists) in 18 appearances.
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 the 90-minute mark for a 4-3 victory.
The Fire (7-15-8, 29 points) have just one win in their last six matches (1-4-1) and enter Saturday’s action in 14th in the East, two points back of Montreal.
Chicago fell 1-0 to Nashville SC on Wednesday. With four matches remaining, the Fire are four points below the playoff line.
“They scored the goal, but we still had the whole second half where we dominated. We had the ball, but the speed of play had to be better. When you have 10 guys behind the ball, then you have to move the ball quicker,” said Chicago coach Frank Klopas.
“It’s always difficult when you’re on the road and you give up the first goal.”
Hugo Cuypers has a team-leading 10 goals in 29 matches this season and Brian Gutierrez has nine goal contributions (six goals and three assists) in 28 outings for Chicago.
–Field Level Media
