MONTREAL — Back from the international break, CF Montréal continues its playoff push by hosting Chicago Fire FC as part of the Club’s annual Kick Childhood Cancer match this Saturday at 7:30pm at Stade Saputo (MLS Season Pass, RDS, TSN, BPM Sports, TSN 690).
After a first loss at home since July 8, Montreal is set to host the Fire, a direct rival hot on Montreal's heels in the Eastern Conference standings. With 32 points, Chicago is just three points behind the Bleu-blanc-noir after 27 games.
CF Montréal holds a 12-8-6 overall record against the Fire, with a +2 goal differential. In the last meeting between the two teams, Chicago shut out the Montrealers 3-0 at Soldier Field on July 12.
However, on home turf against the Fire, Montreal has a record of nine wins in 14 games, with a +9 differential. The Montrealers’ overall home record this season also stands at 9-4-0.
"The crowd has been excellent since the start of the season," said midfielder Mathieu Choinière. “A lot of the games are sold out, and they help us a lot during the games. For us, it remains a fortress."
In addition, during the last match against Columbus, captain Samuel Piette played his 152nd MLS match, setting a new Club record for games played by a field player. The Quebec midfielder is now approaching another important milestone: 12,000 minutes in MLS regular season play. Piette is just 26 minutes away from reaching this mark. He would become the 11th player in Club history (1993-2023) to reach this plateau. The Club's all-time leader remains Mauro Biello at 25,288 minutes.
As for the visitors, they have not won since July 15, when they defeated Toronto FC 1-0. The team led by Frank Klopas is on a four-game losing streak, including a 4-0 defeat to D.C. United before the international break.
With seven games remaining this season for Montreal, four will be played at Stade Saputo and three on the road. After Chicago, the Montrealers will host conference-leading Cincinnati next Wednesday, before embarking on a two-game road swing at Atlanta on September 23, followed by a showdown in Orlando on September 30. Montreal then wraps up the regular season by hosting Houston and Portland on October 4 and 7 respectively, before taking on the Crew in Columbus on MLS Decision Day on October 21.
Saturday's match will be held as part of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. As part of MLS fundraising efforts and the Kick Childhood Cancer campaign, CF Montréal will be supporting the Benjamin Lepage Foundation, which helps families affected by the disease, by donating $1 from every ticket sold for the match.
In addition, a number of special activities will be taking place in the concourse, including mini FootDart, PoolFoot, Volleypong and Teqball.
