MONTREAL – Improve defensively. Attack smartly. Get this season going.
Through three defeats and a draw, the Montreal Impact have failed to keep a clean sheet. But their opponents this Saturday at the Olympic Stadium, the New York Red Bulls have also yet to blank the opposition as they tallied their 0-1-3 record.
Themselves spurred on by their unsatisfactory points tally, Montreal do think that the Red Bulls’ winless start turns them into an even more dangerous prey. There’s a general sense, however, that playing four of their next five games at home is an opportunity to gain some ground - with a few adjustments.
“Our problems start, I think, in possession,” head coach Frank Klopas told reporters on Thursday. “We force the ball in turnovers in bad spots, and that’s one area where, in this game, [we turn to] our decision-making with the ball, because when we win it, then in transition we open up and then, when we lose the ball, a lot of times, we concede a lot of space behind.
“With a team like New York, that has pace and experienced players,” Klopas continued, “I think we have to do a better job now and be better organized when we have the ball and we’re building our attacks so we don’t get caught in transition, numbers down.”
Forward Marco Di Vaio, who will play his first home game since October 19, 2013, when he scored in a 2-1 win against the Philadelphia Union, hinted at a will to make a broader contribution than ‘merely’ scoring.
“We have to work all together,” Di Vaio told reporters. “We know that, every time we leave something on the field, we concede goals, opportinities. It starts with us, forwards. It starts with everyone: we have to do better defensively.
Whether Thierry Henry plays – his history with turf says he won’t –, Bradley Wright-Phillips comes in or Péguy Luyindula moves higher up, Klopas says his team will know what to do.
“We’ve gone over it and we’ll go over it again,” Klopas said. “The guys know exactly what every [New York] player brings to the pitch.”
Olivier Tremblay covers the Impact on MLSsoccer.com
