Impact gets its hands on fifth straight win at home
Optimism reigns with the Bleu-blanc-noir. Once again, this weekend, Montreal pulled a fast one in the Eastern Conference, winning its game while Columbus, New England, Chicago and Toronto all lost. The Impact therefore solidified its hold of sixth place, the last spot giving access to the MLS Cup playoffs, but can sneak a peek at who’s on top: the Revs are just a tiny point up on Rémi Garde’s troops, while the Crew SC have a three-point advantage.
Saturday, the Impact spared no effort to beat a San Jose team going through hard times. Saphir Taïder, who’s becoming more and more essential to Montreal’s play, scored after a sequence of 10 passes in the run of play. Nacho Piatti’s goal came after Ale Silva, another player getting better as the games go by, broke through on the right side. Defensively, the Bleu-blanc-noir was almost perfect, allowing the visitors to take just two shots on net, which Evan Bush pushed aside with his usual resolve. Here are your advanced stats.
Nacho Piatti: 1 goal, 1 assist, 4 shots, 39 successful passes, including 15 in the final third, for an 81% success rate, 2 chances created, 5 dribbles completed, 15 duels won, 2 tackles won, 79 touches.
Saphir Taïder: 1 goal, 1 shot, 73 successful passes, including 19 in the final third, for a 96% success rate, 2 chances created, 2 successful crosses, 1 duel won, 1 tackle won, 88 touches.
Alejandro Silva: 1 assist, 36 successful passes, including 18 in the final third, for an 81% success rate, 1 chance created, 3 dribbles completed, 6 duels won, 2 interceptions, 58 touches.
Saphir Taïder this season:
4 goals, 3 assists in 20 games and 1,710 minutes played, has completed 88% of his passes, 36 chances created, 82 touches per 90 minutes, 5 duels won per 90 minutes.
