Impact should get boost from home crowd
More than 24,000 tickets already sold for Sounders matchup at Olympic Stadium
A return trip to the scene of last year’s playoff nightmare was never going to be easy for the Impact. It rarely is easy for visiting teams in Houston.
Much like in this year’s Major League Soccer season opener in Dallas, the Impact competed well during last Saturday’s 1-0 loss to the Dynamo, and if the soccer gods were fair Montreal would have come home with at least a point. There wasn’t much between the two sides, and it’s no wonder the contest was decided on a deflected goal. In the end, the consolation for the Impact is knowing the club can indeed put up a good, honest fight away from home.
The Impact will have the home crowd behind it for the first time this season on Saturday against the Seattle Sounders at Olympic Stadium in a 4 p.m. start. More than 24,000 tickets have already been sold for the game.
“Being at the Olympic Stadium as an opposing coach, it’s not a pleasant place to be for the visiting team,” says new Impact coach Frank Klopas, who has been on the visiting side of the Big O as coach of the Chicago Fire. “The supporters are fantastic here. It’s incredible and it’s important for us to be back home and play in front of our fans. I know the players will be prepared to walk out there, represent the jersey, the city and the supporters with respect. It’s exciting. ”
Here are my pros and cons from the Impact’s loss in Houston, which dropped Montreal to 0-2 to start the season. Pro: The Impact has outshot its opponents in its first two games, something I’m not sure many would have predicted. The man in the spotlight after the loss in Houston once again was striker Andrew Wenger. Essentially filling in for the suspended Marco Di Vaio, Wenger scored a very good goal in a losing cause against Dallas and created multiple clear-cut chances against Houston. So far this young season, there is a definite improvement in the way Wenger moves off the ball and it seems his time alongside mentor Di Vaoi is paying dividends. Couple that with his extremely high work rate, and you begin to realize Wenger will almost always carve out two or three clear scoring chances per game. Wenger’s best opportunities originated f rom midfield through Hernan Bernardello and Collen Warner. Con: The pregame plan to leave Houston with at least a point ultimately failed. Wenger’s head-scratching miss in the third minute was an-all-too familiar site for Impact fans and an unpleasant flashback to the “wasteful” Wenger of 2013. The thirdyear striker broke alone to goal for all of 40 metres with Dynamo ’keeper Tally Hall completely at his mercy. Wenger then made the grand mistake of allowing the ball to bounce unpredictably on the wet surface, which meant he was never really in control of it. Amazingly, the breakaway ended without even a shot on goal. Wenger missed a second chance in the 38th minute, which wasn’t quite as clear, and a third in the 62nd minute off a corner, snapping a tame attempt with the outside of his left foot that was cleared off the line. The big striker should have opted to slam it home with the inside of his right foot instead. Had Wenger put away any one of those three chances, it likely would have been enough to salvage that point Montreal went in search of, if not all three available points. Pro: Defence wins championships. We’ve heard that time and time again. Most people, though, tend to place too much emphasis on the defenders and fail to realize the importance of the goalkeeper in that popular saying. Troy Perkins represents the last line of defence for the Impact, which means if he’s not also on point, don’t expect to win many games. So far, Perkins has been on point and cannot be faulted for any of the four goals conceded in the first two games. Key saves in the 10th and 74th minute kept the Impact in the contest against Houston and reassured everyone that even though all may not be well with the back four, the last line of defence is just fine, thank you. Con: Suspensions and injuries are already hurting the Impact and have placed a spotlight on the team’s roster depth. In response to the recent injury to Sanna Nyassi, Klopas opted to deploy defensive-midfielder Warner as a right-winger against Houston. Klopas conceivably wanted to provide defensive help for rookie fullback Eric Miller in order to combat the attacking threat of Dynamo assist king Brad Davis and speedy fullback Corey Ashe. It worked, but it came at the expense of further unbalancing the overall attack with danger-man Justin Mapp moved to the opposite wing, where he is noticeably less effective. Maybe Klopas should have placed more emphasis on Houston’s Will Bruin. In the lead-up to the goal, four Impact players marked two Dynamo players in the box, but no one accounted for Bruin, who stood unmarked at the top of the box. If you’re keeping count, Bruin’s latest goal gives him five in eight games against Montreal. Pro: Felipe squeezed off five shots to goal — the most of any player on either side — and seemed genuinely intent on being productive in the offensive end. And welcome back to captain Patrice Bernier with another 72 minutes under his belt as he continues to fight back to full fitness. I can’t stress enough how important the partnership between Bernier and Bernardello will be to the success of the Impact this season. . Con: Hands up if you’re one who believes Hassoun Camara is a better centre back than a fullback. I respectfully beg to differ. There is no denying Camara’s outstanding dribbling and playmaking abilities, but as a central defender in both games he’s been well behind tactically. Camara has a tendency to unplug mentally and his positioning in the heart of the back line needs significant tailoring. When you consider the embarrassing tumble and failed clearance by Matteo Ferrari in the 74th minute, which led to a Dynamo break on goal, plus Camara’s shortcomings you quickly realize the fragility in the centre of Montreal’s back line. Pro: Home cooking has proven to be the answer to the Impact’s woes in the past. Saturday’s home opener won’t come soon enough for the players as they look to get things right on the scoresheet.