A fifth-minute penalty kick conversion by Ignacio Piatti, a stoppage time Piatti goal to give him a brace, and an own goal in between gave the Montreal Impact more than enough to defeat the Orlando City SC 3-0 on Wednesday night at a rain-drenched Stade Saputo.
The match didn't take long to heat up, as Cristian Higuita was ruled to have clipped Saphir Taider inside the Orlando box in the opening sequence. Piatti coolly finished to give the Impact the early lead, which they maintained through a first half punctuated by strong storms.
In the 55th minute, the Impact doubled their lead when Piatti led an attack, fed an outlet pass to Daniel Lovitz, who then sent a dangerous cross in. Though Amro Tarek beat Matteo Mancuso to the ball, he accidentally tapped it past keeper Joe Bendik. In the second minute of stoppage time, after changes on both sides were left wanting, Piatti closed out the scoring on a run in which he rounded Bendik.
- 5' – MTL – Ignatio Piatti (PK) | WATCH
- 55' – MTL – Amro Tarek (OG) | WATCH
- 90' + 2' – MTL – Ignatio Piatti | WATCH
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: Montreal not only got a needed win, but took a chunk out of their negative goal differential (though they've still got a few chunks to go to get even). For an Orlando side that has been decidely enigmatic this season, this performance adds to the questions about whether they'll end up above or below the playoff line. If the Lions weren't happy with their performance against the Impact, they at least get another shot at them, but at home, in just 10 days.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: Fans were barely in their seats when Taider drew the penalty that allowed Piatti to score. Though Orlando certainly had chances to equalize after that, Piatti's PK effectively tamed the Lions.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: Consider this: Piatti was agonizingly close to adding at least a pair of assists to his brace, and was still clearly the most impactful player on the field.
Next Up
- MONTREAL IMPACT: Saturday, June 23 at Orlando City SC (7:30 pm ET | TV & streaming info)
- ORLANDO CITY SC: Wednesday, June 20 at DC United (US Open Cup) (7 pm ET | TV & streaming info)
