How can I say this in a way that really conveys the gravity of the situation? All caps, maybe? THE LOONS ARE COMING BACK TO ALLIANZ FIELD! Yeah, that works. This Saturday, Major League Soccer action returns to Midway, with CF Montréal set to be the first opponent to play in the friendly confines of our soccer fortress this year. Both squads lost their opening matches, meaning this chance to bounce back is going to have plenty of spirit—don’t miss it!
Minnesota United (0-1-0)
Run of Form: L
Week one didn’t go quite as planned, but it wasn’t too far off. Despite the 1-0 loss to LAFC, your Loons showed that they can compete with the top end of the Western Conference, and had a few more fortunate bounces gone their way, they could’ve easily escaped BMO Stadium with at least a point. Saturday’s match feels like the perfect occasion to open the season’s scoring, and after the performance put on by Kelvin Yeboah in game one, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he were the one to find the net first. With new signings still getting up to speed and an established core leading the way, it won’t be long before the Loons start putting points on the board.
CF Montréal (0-1-0)
Run of Form: L
Ever since Wilfried Nancy left for Columbus, it’s been a rollercoaster of performances for CF Montréal. The undisputedly most French team in MLS finished second in the Eastern Conference in 2022, missed the playoffs in 2023, then snuck into the Wild Card round in 2024 via a fantastic finish to the regular season. Their fall from grace was sudden and difficult in 2023, but after ending last year on a high note, Le CFM looks set to continue making strides forward in pursuit of that magical combination that Nancy found. A narrow loss to Atlanta United on opening day could have easily fallen their way, and much like the Loons, they’ll be confident in their ability to bounce back this weekend.
Keys to the Match:
A Match Made in Heaven
After facing off against another team that prefers to counterattack on opening day, the Loons are coming up against a much different opponent this weekend. Montréal was in the top ten for average time of possession last season, and while this year’s squad looks a fair bit different, the game plan remains the same under Laurent Courtois. In their loss to Atlanta last week, Montréal won the possession battle by a small margin, and despite having slightly fewer scoring opportunities, they generated higher quality chances. Their 3.5 expected goals beat Atlanta’s 2.2 and proved to be the highest expected goals total in the entire league on Matchday 1. They like to have the ball, while we tend to cede possession and look for quick transitions. If both sides remain true to form, this match will be the perfect occasion for both teams to showcase their best soccer.
Stretch Those Legs
Whenever you play against a player as threatening as Denis Bouanga, it’s hard not to adjust your gameplan to keep them contained. Carlos Harvey and Bongokuhle Hlongwane did a fantastic job of shutting him down for the majority of last Saturday’s game, but it was often at the cost of Bongi getting involved in the attack. While we saw flashes of Hlongwane’s attacking prowess against LAFC, it wasn’t nearly as frequent as we’ve grown accustomed to—that needs to change. This weekend’s match against Montréal should give him a chance to continue growing into the wingback role, and without a perennial golden boot candidate to worry about, it seems likely that we’ll see him getting up the pitch a bit more often in front of the Loons-faithful. This should add some more bite to the Loons’ attack and could be the key to finding the back of the net.
A Solid Foundation
A team can only be as strong as the foundation it’s built on, and for the Loons, that foundation has a back three at its core. Michael Boxall and Carlos Harvey feel like nailed-on starters, providing a pair of steady, reliable presences in the back. While it’s unlikely that Coach Ramsay will be adjusting his formation to take on Montréal, it isn’t out of the question to see a shift in personnel. With Joseph Rosales’ slight discomfort forcing a halftime substitution last week and Duggan not yet established in the squad, we could see Jefferson Diaz, Devin Padelford, Anthony Markanich, or even new signing Nicolás Romero slide into the starting lineup this weekend. Does Montréal’s front three present a different enough threat than LAFC that it’s worth changing personnel? Who’s healthy and prepared to play? These will be the most important questions for Coach Ramsay to work through this week before he puts his starting eleven together.
