Independence Sink FC Montreal With Second Half Goal

One Goal Is Enough As Charlotte Independence Beat The Bleu-Blanc-Noir At Stade Saputo

SportsTristan D’Amours — Published August 27, 2015

Following an unbeaten run of five matches, FC Montreal has cooled down, having only scored one goal in their last two games.

Midfielder Louis Béland-Goyette didn’t feel his team played as well as they have in the past, specifically, when the team found success during a five-game road trip in late July and early August, and was considered the hottest team in the United Soccer League.

“We came out with no intensity, no will and we didn’t fight them. We started with a little more intensity but it wasn’t enough to get a goal,” said Béland-Goyette. “I find that the big difference [during the road trip] was that we fought until the end. We competed with them in terms of intensity and will to win. That’s the test, to try to do this for multiple games and that’s the toughest part too.”

Head coach Philippe Eullaffroy wasn’t a fan of his team’s careless play and lack of intensity. His dissatisfaction led to an unusual first-half substitution, which saw winger Frédéric Lajoie-Gravelle replaced by Fabio Morello at the 35th minute.

“There is a primordial thing with us,” said Eullaffroy. “The game is more important than everything. The respect of the game is more important than anything. If you don’t respect the game, you don’t play.”

“There is a primordial thing with us,” said Eullaffroy. “The game is more important than everything. The respect of the game is more important than anything. If you don’t respect the game, you don’t play.”

Despite a disappointing first half for FC Montreal, the team sought to come out stronger in the second half, but ultimately didn’t earn a positive result. Instead, it was the visiting Charlotte Independence who took advantage.

During the 74th minute, former Montreal Impact draft pick Paolo DelPiccolo sent a cross from the right side of the field to freshly substituted forward Caleb Calvert. He then headed the ball past Montreal keeper Yann Fillion, giving his club all they needed to win the game.

It was another difficult game for first-team loanee forward Romario Williams. In six appearances for the 2015 first-round draft pick of the Montreal Impact, he has yet to score a goal for FC Montreal.
But Eullaffroy doesn’t solely blame Williams for his offensive woes.

“We’d like him to create more scoring chances, now the players around him don’t place him in the best conditions so it’s more than an individual performance, it’s a collective performance,” Eullaffroy said. “Even if an individual was in the best conditions, he would have difficulty [standing] out tonight because there were too many gaps collectively.”

Other players like left-back Aron Mkungilwa—making his professional start—were also self-critical of their play.

“I’m not very happy with my performance in the first half, especially defensively because I played on my heels too much. I think it’s because of the nerves,” he said. “At this level, I had to expect that the pressure would come in faster and that the players would be better tactically and technically.”

“Timid. Mediocre. He picked it up well [in the second half],” added Eullaffroy. “He had too much respect for the opponent. He could do better, it’s his first game but needs to do better.”

FC Montreal will travel down to Pennsylvania where they will play the Harrisburg City Islanders on Saturday August 29. The next home game will be FC Montreal’s penultimate match in their inaugural USL campaign as they will host New York Red Bulls II at Stade Saputo on September 9.