NYCFC spoiled its good run of form after dropping points at home, losing 1-0 to Eastern Conference rivals CF Montreal on Prince Owusu’s strike three minutes into the second half.
The Boys in Blue lined up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, which saw new signing Aiden O’Neill get his first start in midfield in place of the injured Keaton Parks.
“When [Midfielder] Keaton Parks is not available for us, we have to do some homework to shape our midfield. Keaton wasn’t available,” manager Pascal Jansen said after the match.
“Aiden [O’Neill] came in. We checked him — he trained with us for two days and looked good. So, he was cleared for a maximum of 60 minutes.”
Jansen’s side wasted no time creating chances, with Alonso Martinez and Tayvon Gray connecting through a cross early in the third minute, resulting in the team’s first shot on target.
The Pigeons continued their offensive pressure throughout the early phases of the game, culminating in a 12th-minute strike from Martinez that went wide.
While City’s attack looked far more threatening compared to previous matches, in midfield, O’Neill was comfortable, helping control the tempo and linking up well with Maxi Moralez.
In the 20th minute, the duo combined again to find an overlapping Andres Perea on the wing, who squared it to Martinez for a strike that was saved by Montreal goalkeeper Jonathon Sirois.
From there, Montreal began to settle in and gain momentum, starting with their forward line. Owusu and fellow striker Giacomo Vrioni began to test Matt Freese, with a header from Vrioni in the 22nd minute forcing a save from the City goalkeeper.
A few minutes later, Justin Haak was caught in possession in NYCFC’s penalty box, leading to Owusu getting another shot on target, which Freese saved.
By halftime, Freese had made four saves for the Pigeons, keeping them in lockstep with a Montreal side that was growing in confidence.
Not only was the first half evenly matched, but it was also physical for both sides, with the two teams combining for 16 fouls by the time the first 45 minutes ended.
In the second half, Jansen made a pair of changes, substituting in Mitja Ilenic and Agustin Ojeda, hoping to spark the attack. But just three minutes in, Montreal found the opener through Owusu, who curled a shot in from outside the box to put the visitors up 1-0 in the 48th minute.
City continued to push forward but still struggled to break Montreal’s defensive shape. O’Neill came off around the hour mark for Strahinja Tanasijevic, followed by further attacking adjustments that included Hannes Wolf replacing Julian Fernandez and Mounsef Bakrar replacing left-back Nico Cavallo.
The best chance for the Boys in Blue to equalize came in the 72nd minute, when Wolf slipped in a well-weighted through ball to Martinez in the box that was saved.
From that point on, NYCFC found it difficult to get consistent chances on goal, while Montreal did well to manage the game.
Despite City’s attacking efforts, the team failed to create another clear chance on target for the rest of the match, losing their fifth game of the season.
“On paper, Montreal comes in with three points – struggling to get those points. If you look at our MLS games in the last few weeks, we did okay, the attacking threat has been an issue throughout all the games,” Jansen said.
“It’s a tough one, because you get one moment in the second half where [Montreal] escapes, and they get a good shot on target and a good goal. But for us, to get ourselves in a comfortable position during these games, we should do more with the ball [in the attacking third during the first 20 to 25 minutes] to [shift momentum] in our direction.”
