Montreal Impact Vs Philadelphia Union: 3 things we learned – Closing the gap

2. Amarikwa opens account with Montreal

Quincy Amarikwa took advantage of his second start for the Impact with his first goal for the club.

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A late addition to the ranks, Amarikwa has the potential to turn into a massive acquisition as the club enters the twilight of the regular season. The Impact tend to struggle when the opposition are able to shackle Piatti. They have few other attacking options to turn to and goals can subsequently be hard to come by — of the 41 goals they have scored, Piatti has been directly involved in 24 of them.

So if Amarikwa can provide an alternative attacking option to Piatti, then it will make this Montreal attack substantially more potent. Amarikwa scored his first goal for Montreal with a bundled finish after some sharp attacking movement to burst into the six-yard box.

But he also offered a focal point for the Impact attack throughout, exemplified by his turn and strike that led to Stephen Taider’s rebounded effort for the second goal, all coming because of Amarikwa’s ability with his back to goal. Montreal are a different team when they can provide Piatti with other attacking weapons.