MONTREAL, Quebec – The Impact U21 team lost for only the second time this season on Saturday, losing 2-1 to Brampton City United at the Sport Complex of College St-Jean-Vianney, in Rivières-des-Prairies.
Two goals from forward Alex Braletic lifted the visitors to victory, jumping in front of the Impact into 6th place in the Canadian Soccer League standings.
Braletic opened the scoring just before halftime with a left-footed strike that beat U21 goalkeeper Jason Beaulieu to his left.
In the 62nd minute, the Brampton City forward took advantage of a deep ball when he got free down the right wing to score his second of the game with a low shot to the right of the Impact keeper.
The Impact had a number of chances to score, but were unable to find the back of the net.
In the 67th minute, midfielder Wandrille Lefevre came close to scoring, but his shot using the inside of his foot hit the left post.
In the game’s final minutes, midfielder Philippe Lincourt-Joseph broke down the right flank before hammering a left-footer that was stopped by Brampton’s goalkeeper.
“There are days like today when you can lose without having the impression that you played poorly,” said Impact U21 head coach Philippe Eullaffroy. “We created 10 scoring opportunities, two of which were excellent ones, but we could not take advantage of them.”
“Collectively, we were solid from start to finish,” added Eullaffroy. “We respected our identity on the field by remaining united. We never like to lose, but the performance was still a good one.”
The U21s will play its next regular season game on August 10, at 8:30pm (ET), versus London City in Cove Road, Ontario.
Impact U21 in France
The U21s now take the direction of France this Sunday to play in a series of matches versus the reserve teams of clubs from Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. The Impact will face Troyes (July 27), Auxerre (July 29) and Reims (August 1). The team will practice near Troyes’ training centre.
“We would have liked to take three points before our departure,” said Eullaffroy. “We will play against teams of another calibre than the one we faced this afternoon and it will be important to make sure we execute properly. The players are excited to make this trip. They are anxious to measure up against teams from other countries. They are very aware of the importance of this trip, notably in terms of evaluation. We leave with a big smile on our faces and we hope to return with them as well.”
All the details of the trip can be found on impactmontreal.com
Impact Lineup
MTL - Beaulieu; Augustin, Meftouh (Tissot), Lapointe-Sénécal, Mallace; Messoudi (Jackson-Hamel), Lefevre, Morin, James; Ndiaye (Luarca-Echeverria, Lincourt-Joseph), King (Ait Slimane)
* First team player
Impact U18 player
GOALS:
BRA - Braletic 45’
BRA - Braletic 62’
