Impact players and staff celebrate in-front of their fans after cementing their place in history with a 2-1 win (3-1 agg) over the New York Red Bulls at Red Bull Arena. Photo: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
HARRISON, NJ — L’Impact de Montréal cemented their place in Major League Soccer history — and Canadian soccer folklore — on Sunday evening by becoming the first Canadian team to ever reach an eastern conference final beating the New York Red Bulls 2-1 (3-1 Aggregate) at Red Bull Area, with a display that has been typical of late.
A brace from Ignacio Patti ensured Montréal would advance to play the winner of Toronto FC and New York City FC on the 22nd of November at the Stade Olympique in Montréal, and in truth, Mauro Biello’s team never really needed to get themselves out of second gear.
“We were able to score that important goal,” mused Biello after the game. “They [Red Bulls] pushed a little bit more but we scored the second goal. Defensively, we were very good even if [Red Bulls] had more possession — they were not clear scoring chances especially in the first half.”
Montréal came with a game plan and they executed it to perfection. “We tried to close down the middle” said Biello. “We thought that if we closed down the middle it would be hard for them [New York Red Bulls] and they’d have to go around us. I think in the end we frustrated them.”
Aside from a brief moment of madness by Evan Bush to concede a penalty kick, Montréal never really looked uncomfortable. Laurent Ciman and Victor Cabrera both had another extremely solid game and MVP finalists Sacha Kljestan and Bradley Wright-Phillips frankly? were non factors.
What a difference a few months can make.
This Montréal team is a far cry from the team that won just six games between April 23rd and September 29th. L’Impact have clicked when it really mattered the most. The team has come together in a way that many thought not possible and it is producing outstanding results.
Head Coach Mauro Biellow describes the way in which the team has come together as “powerful.” Knocking off the favorites for Major League Soccer’s biggest prize is a good way to exercise that power.
When L’Impact was drawn against a surging DC United side in the first round of the MLS Cup playoffs most wrote Montréal off. This sentiment continued even after the 4-2 demolition through into the build-up versus the new York Red Bulls.
Before the first leg at Stade Saputo a montage played featuring Eric Church’s song “The Outsiders.”
“They’re the in crowd, we’re the other ones
It’s a different kind of cloth that we’re cut from
We let our colors show, where the numbers ain’t
We’re the paint where there ain’t supposed to be paint
That’s who we are
That’s how we roll
The Outsiders.”
Befitting for a team that nobody gave a hair of a chance to.
Now? L’Impact de Montréal — recent CONCACAF Champions League finalists — take on Toronto FC and Sebastian Giovinco in the MLS Cup Eastern Conference final. Surely nobody will give Mauro Biello and his team a chance against the “Atomic Ant” and Toronto, either. Honestly? That’s the way that Montréal would prefer it.
The mix of grit; determination; and flair that L’Impact brings to the table is indicative of the way the city of Montréal is made up.
Speaking of the fans Biello simply said that “They’ve [fans]been with us all the way. The team went through a little bit of a bump this year but we were able to come together at the end and show the type of character we have and the type of talent we have in this team.”
“I am happy for my team. It has nothing to do with me,” claims the Impact head coach. “Its a group that came together, a group that started to believe that we are a team that can go far. I am proud of that.”
The lack of respect has built up somewhat of a resentment toward the rest of the league within the Montréal dressing room. They long to be taken seriously — but rather than go out and lose their heads, the Impact has turned this resentment into a form of motivation.
The irony in all of this is that things still have a funny way of coming back around to Didier Drogba. The Ivorian designated player has been a source of continuous controversy north of the border this season, and has forced Mauro Biello to take action.
Drogba may have been inwardly at war with himself; the club; and Mauro Biello, but Biello didn’t even blink. In dealing with Drogba the way he has, Mauro Biello has ushered in a powerful breed of confidence throughout the Montréal dressing room.
L’Impact knew they would advance to the Eastern Conference finals after Drogba picked up the ball in his own half and drilled a decisive pass out to Dominic Oduro. Oduro drew the defenders, found Drogba’s late run, and the former Champions League winner unselfishly shoveled the ball out to Nacho Piatti. Game over.
There is a french proverb that reads: “Petit a petit, l’oiseau fait son nid.” Literally translated it means “little by little, the bird makes its nest.” Just like the bird — little by little; inch by inch — , Mauro Biello and the Impact are building something that is bigger than themselves.
“It’s fantastic for my group and we now believe that we can take on any team in this league,” Biello told press. And you know what? It might be time that we start to believe it, too.
