CF Montreal can wrap up the second seed in the Eastern Conference provided they complete a season sweep of the host New England Revolution on Saturday in Foxborough, Mass.
CF Montreal (17-9-5, 56 points), who recorded a 4-0 win over New England on Aug. 20, have been a big surprise this season. After missing the playoffs in 2021, they vaulted to the third-best MLS points total with three games left this campaign.
They’re also one of the most entertaining teams in the league, with an average of 3.45 goals per game scored in their matches.
That latter note is something manager Wilfried Nancy would like to see changed heading into the playoffs, when defense becomes more important. Montreal has allowed multiple goals on 15 occasions, including in its 3-2 home win over the Chicago Fire on Tuesday.
“I want us to have a little more control in these types of games,” Nancy said. “That’s the next step for us. … I would have liked to have been a little more relaxed at the end of the game. We caused ourselves some problems and could have handled it better.”
Romell Quioto has a team-leading 15 goals and Kei Kamara and Djordje Mihailovic each have eight for CF Montreal.
The Revolution (9-11-11, 38 points) are one of a few MLS sides without a double-digit goal scorer this season.
Adam Buksa was on pace to easily reach that threshold with seven goals before earning a summer transfer to RC Lens in France’s Ligue 1.
Playmaker Carles Gil has carried a heavier scoring load with seven goals to go with this team-leading 13 assists. Gustavo Bou’s seven goals — while limited to 16 games due to injuries — is less than half of his total of 15 last year.
The Revolution find themselves in 10th place in the East entering the weekend following a 3-1 loss at the Houston Dynamo on Tuesday night. New England, however, is only three points back of the final playoff spot.
“Our heads are still high,” defender Jon Bell said. “We have three games left and we know that there is still a possibility, so we’re not going to go out each practice with our heads down.”
–Field Level Media
