Montreal Impact vs Seattle Sounders: Three Key Takeaways
By Rohit Menon
The Montreal Impact vs Seattle Sounders encounter at the Montreal Olympic Stadium ended in an exciting 2-2 draw. Here are three takeaways from the game.
Montreal Impact blew a two-goal lead to the Seattle Sounders in the last 10 minutes as both sides shared the spoils in week 2 of the 2017 MLS season. Mancosu’s 17th-minute opener and a second-half solo goal from Nacho Piatti looked sway the result in Impact’s favor, but a late Nicolas Lodeiro penalty and a last-gasp equalizer from Will Bruin ruined the evening for the home side.
New Sounders signing Harry Shipp made his first start of the season against his former club and played a decent game, although his presence on the pitch for the first 70 minutes bore no fruit. The match also saw Adrian Arregui get his first minutes for the Impact after he came on as a second-half substitute for Patrice Bernier.
1. Seattle Sounders gain momentum after spirited comeback
Despite not being able to fashion out too many clear-cut chances through most of the 90 minutes, the Sounders turned on the pressure in the final 20 to secure a vital point at the Olympic Stadium. Their fast paced counter-attacks caught a static Impact backline by surprise and they could have even won the game had it not been for a disallowed goal moments after their 83rd-minute penalty.
Jordan Morris and Clint Dempsey were both a handful for the opposition defense and tried to test the keeper whenever the opportunity presented itself, while Nicolas Lodeiro was fairly active as a creative outlet as well.
With most of the players starting to find their rhythm after the first two games of the MLS season, Brian Schmetzer’s men should be confident ahead of their next fixture against the Eastern Conference’s New York Red Bulls.
2. Piatti looks set for a strong 2017 campaign
Ignacio Piatti was easily the best player on the pitch and proved this by picking up a goal and an assist to his name. He helped Matteo Mancosu notch his first goal of the season with a sublime pass in the 17th minute, before calmly scoring one of his own in the 51st minute on a counter-attack.
The 32-year-old playmaker started the match from the left-hand side and was a constant menace for the Sounders, moving into pockets of space and picking up passes at will. His incredible vision and ability to slow down the game makes him a huge asset to this Montreal Impact team, who need to make sure he stays fit and in form if they stand any chance of picking up silverware this season.
3. Both defenses put in disappointing performances.
There was plenty of promise for both the Montreal Impact and the Seattle Sounders going forward, but their coaches have a lot to sort out when it comes to the defensive side of the game. The away side was two goals down for the second game running and somehow managed a result; the home side didn’t do themselves any favors by conceding two right at the death.
Next: Philadelphia vs Toronto: Three Key Takeaways
Two culprits come to mind for their awful displays in the match: Seattle Sounders’ defender Roman Torres and Montreal Impact’s Laurent Ciman. The former was slow to react all game and made quite a few rash challenges (including a kick on Dominic Oduro) while the latter was responsible for the penalty and could’ve been sent off by the end of the game having already picked up a yellow earlier.