CF Montreal stumbles, abrupt end to season

Season over for CF Montreal. Wilfried Nancy’s squad lost 3-1 on Sunday afternoon to defending MLS champions New York City FC. 19,619 spectators came to Stade Saputo for what turned out to be the Montreal club’s last game.

The start of the CFM meeting took place under the sign of nervousness. In the sixth minute of play, a scramble in the defensive zone allowed midfielder Maximiliano Morález to find the back of the net to give the New Yorkers the lead.

The Montrealers then weighed on the accelerator. Kei Kamara (16th), then Ismaël Koné (32nd) had golden chances in the penalty area, but both came up against goalkeeper Sean Johnson.

Opportunistic, the New Yorkers doubled their lead at the very end of the first half, through Brazilian striker Héber.

Barely entering the field, striker Talles Magno dealt the hosts a hard blow by scoring from a penalty, after goalkeeper James Pantemis mowed him down in the penalty area.

Djordje Mihailovic gave hope to the thousands of supporters on the spot. The American midfielder scored in the 85th minute to reduce the gap to two goals.

However, it was too little too late for the Bleu-blanc-noir who is hunkering down.

This means that it was the last time that the Montreal public had the chance to see Djordje Mihailovic and Victor Wanyama in the uniform of the CFM. The two men will fly away under other skies next season.

New York City FC will meet the Philadelphia Union next Sunday for the Eastern Conference final. The Pennsylvania team qualified for the semi-finals by beating FC Cincinnati 1-0 on Thursday night.

LAFC will host the Western Conference Finals. Los Angeles will face the winner of the Texas duel between Austin and Dallas scheduled for Sunday evening.