CF Montreal cranks up offence to rout Revolution

MONTREAL — CF Montreal all but secured a playoff berth following a dominant 4-0 victory over the New England Revolution on Saturday at Stade Saputo.

Montreal (14-8-4) now enjoys a seven-game unbeaten run, posting five wins and two draws in that period.

“We wanted to come out strong and have a good game and that’s crucial if you want to be a dangerous team and host a playoff game,” said midfielder Samuel Piette.

“You have to send a message to other teams and say, 'If you come here, it's not going to be easy' and I think we did very well in that regard. We needed this type of game for confidence.”

Kei Kamara scored once for Montreal with Romell Quioto claiming another brace and Matko Miljevic closing out with a penalty.

Both sides got off to a cautious start with neither wanting to produce an error that would lead to them conceding. As the half wore on, Montreal gradually began to impose their tempo on New England’s (8-8-10) low block.

Just before the half-hour mark, Quioto created space on the left side of the box before sending a low cross into Kamara who made no mistake. This was Kamara’s 135th goal in his MLS career, putting him alone at third place all time.

Montreal continued to increase the pressure, buoyed by a sold-out home crowd. Another breakthrough five minutes before halftime when Mathieu Choinière played Lassi Lappalainen into space who then squared it for Quioto, doubling their lead.

Such a consistent offensive display has been something that Montreal has sorely missed, going through short bursts of extreme attacking potency and then taking their foot off the gas. Tonight, was different as they seemingly created dangerous chances each time they attacked.

“This is 'process.' The fact they were able to work since last year and up to this moment is proof,” said coach Wilfried Nancy. “That is why ‘process’ is a very meaningful word to me. When you believe in a project, you’re able to do good things. Today they succeeded.”

Montreal continued on the front foot during the second half, imposing themselves in the Revolution’s half and finding the back of the net in less than 10 minutes.

Piette picked up his third assist in as many games, switching the ball to Quioto who put together a brilliant piece of skill by dropping his defender and cheekily finishing his second of the night.

New England showed some fight toward the end of the game, creating multiple golden opportunities, but found themselves frustrated each time.

“We’ve been working hard to finally get a clean sheet. We were very motivated tonight after what New England did to us last season. We wanted to make a statement and show that this year we’re the team on top,” said centre-back Kamal Miller. “We’re trying to keep pace with Philadelphia. Now that we’re having a good run, we have to keep it going and keep the pressure on them.”

That would all be undone in the 90th minute when Miljevic was brought down in the area and converted the ensuing penalty, bringing the lead to four.

Nancy also confirmed that Djordje Mihailovic would be leaving the club, stating that “a transfer is imminent” but refusing to elaborate further.

Both teams return to action next weekend as Montreal travels to Chicago on Aug. 27 to face the Fire while the Revolution host L.A. Galaxy on Aug. 28.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 20, 2022.