SUMMARY
CF Montreal thought they could exploit certain gaps in Nashville SC’s game, but the opposite happened on Saturday evening.
Sam Surridge recorded a hat trick and the Bleu-blanc-noir lost 4-1 to the Tennessee squad at Geodis Park.
Statistics show that Montrealers have succeeded in part of their mission abroad. They dominated their opponents in ball possession (57.5% versus 42.5) and in the number of passes attempted (606 versus 365), but when it came time to have quality chances, it was the home team that delivered the best blows.
Surridge, Hany Mukhtar and Jacob Shaffelburg gave the Montreal defense headaches all evening, letting their chemistry speak for itself during several quick exchanges. They were surgical in attack, which led to a number of scoring opportunities in the final third.
“I feel like they sent a lot of long balls and they were perfect to the inch,” observed midfielder Raheem Edwards. They know what they want to do and it’s difficult to counter when there is such cohesion. There were several good serves on the wings. On some goals we couldn’t do much so you have to tip your hat. »
Precision is one thing, but physical dominance is another. Nashville SC (2-3-5) manhandled CF Montreal (3-4-3) in this aspect of the game, winning more duels for the ball (45 against 37) and more aerial duels (13 against four). .
The penalty area has regularly been the playground for Gary Smith’s men.
In the 19th minute, Mukhtar slipped between Joel Waterman and Fernando Alvarez and came up against goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois at close range. Two minutes later, Walker Zimmerman passed in front of Alvarez and he threaded the needle with his head. In the 82nd minute, after two header deflections that hit the post and crossbar, Surridge completed his first career MLS hat trick. These examples painted the picture of a complicated match for the visitors.
“It’s a good lesson for us and for me. Last week (at Columbus), I thought our defense in the box was impressive and here it was poor. It reflects many things for us. We can be brilliant and then mediocre. Collectively and individually, it’s not consistent enough. We cannot have so much difference in our individual and collective performances,” analyzed the head coach of the Bleu-blanc-noir, Laurent Courtois.
The Montreal team seemed to have regained rhythm before the end of the first half, even if they were trailing 2-0, but a goal from Surridge upon returning from the locker room, in the 47th minute, hurt them.
More than half of the goals allowed by CF Montreal this season occurred in the first 10 minutes or the last 10 minutes – as well as stoppages in play – of a half.
“Our message in the locker room was that we didn’t have a good first half, but as soon as we scored a goal, it was going to stress out Nashville. It’s not that the message is getting across badly or that the directions are not clear, it’s simply at this moment that Nashville took advantage of some errors on our part,” explained Quebecer Samuel Piette.
CF Montreal will return to action next Saturday, when Lionel Messi and Inter Miami CF will visit Saputo Stadium.
A dangerous combination
Nashville SC worked very well in the middle of the field in the opening minutes and they were rewarded by scoring the first goal of the match.
After losing the ball, Dru Yearwood saw his long pass deflect against the foot of Mathieu Choinière, but it still reached Surridge. The latter hit the target on the far side.
Sirois’ spectacular save at the expense of Mukhtar did not wake up his teammates and Zimmerman doubled his team’s lead to put Nashville SC in a good position to stop their series of games at five without savoring a victory.
CF Montreal even came close to being caught again a few moments later. Shaffelburg spotted Mukhtar in the penalty area, but his shot failed to beat the post to Sirois’ left.
The Bleu-blanc-noir quietly recovered, but its breakthroughs into the enemy zone did not materialize. Ariel Lassiter nevertheless issued a warning in the 41st minute, but his very long shot just missed the target.
Both teams had barely left the locker room when Nashville SC continued to have fun. Yearwood made a long throw to Mukhtar, who caught the ball well on first contact. After putting Waterman on his heels, the 2022 MLS Most Valuable Player set the table for Surridge’s second goal of the game.
Sirois refused to give up and gave his teammates hope when he stood up to Shaffelburg, who had come alone in front of him in the 63rd minute. The Montrealers responded by opening their counter two minutes later, when Zimmerman deceived the vigilance of his goalkeeper following a low cross from Choinière.
The Bleu-blanc-noir had a new lease of life thanks to this goal and gave a few warning shots, but Surridge hit the final nail in the 82nd minute, following a frenzied sequence in the penalty area .
2024-05-04 20:51:00
#MLS #Montreal #loses #Nashville
