Montreal takes on Orlando City SC for first time this season
CF Montréal will travel to Florida to take on Orlando City SC for the first time this season, this Wednesday at 7:30pm at Exploria Stadium (TVA Sports, TSN, 91.9 Sports, TSN 690). After falling 1-0 to Nashville SC last Saturday, the team’s first loss at Stade Saputo in 2021, Wilfried Nancy’s men will be looking to bounce back with a big result on the road in Florida.
Montreal is eighth in the Eastern Conference, right under the playoff line, while Nani and his teammates are in third, just seven points ahead of Montreal. Head coach Óscar Pareja’s men are also coming off a loss, falling 3-0 to Atlanta United over the weekend.
“Orlando is a team that opens up a little more,” said head coach Wilfried Nancy. “They started putting something interesting in play last season and this year they really developed a unique style of play. They usually defend with four defenders in the back, but when they attack, only three defenders stay back. They will be a bit of a different opponent.”
This is the first of three meetings between the two sides. Montreal will travel back to Orlando in the middle of October, before hosting Orlando on the final day of the regular season in early November. With just 11 games left in the season, these two teams will get to know each other well over the next few weeks.
“In the past, they played a certain way, but now they a way of playing that is a lot more established,” added Nancy. “They also have great players. We talk a lot about Nani, but João is extremely interesting on the flanks. He has a lot of speed. They have a balanced team that’s a lot more aggressive than in the past.”
Injury update
Lassi Lappalainen continues to be sidelined with an injury but is making progress. The Finn last started a game on July 25 against New England but could be an option for the technical staff this Wednesday in Orlando.
“Lassi is doing well. He played 45 minutes with the reserve team and he’s training well, explained Nancy. I will make a decision on whether or not he’ll be able to help us on Wednesday or whether to wait a little longer.”
