Montreal Impact took advantage of playing the first leg at
It was a close game in Montreal and somewhat of the same is expected to happen now in American soil. With the intention of advancing to a stage that Impact has never been in before, only the strongest squad will survive.
Impact's streak in the last few games has been quite impressive. With only one loss in their last six games, they feel pretty confident on getting past Columbus, a team that has lost three of their last six matches. Also, in head to head encounters, Montreal has won four out of the previous five. It's been over a year since Columbus beat Impact and it was at their home ground 2-0.
The center of attraction in this game is called Didier Drogba. The 37-year-old player is definitely making a big impact with Montreal and has scored 12 goals in his first 13 games with the team. It is the best streak out of any player in the league. While he did not find the back of the net in the first leg, he has done so in seven out of Montreal's ten previous games.
WATCH: Drogba will make sure he is the center of attention one way or the other
Didier Drogba, helping his team in any way he can... pic.twitter.com/lVpCeizugv
— Footy Jokes (@Footy_Jokes) November 2, 2015
Team captain (Montreal) Patrice Bernier is coming back to life when it matters the most for his team. Bernier scored one of the two goals last Sunday night and gave the assist for the other one. Ignacio Piatti is another player to follow for the visiting side. The Argentinian midfielder has two goals and three assists in the last five games. It is his second season with the team and already making the progress that was expected from him.
On the other side, Columbus knows just how hard to beat Montreal can be. The Crew knows they have an away-goal advantage, but that they need a stronger defense if they want to get past this round. They need to stop an offense that has scored at least one goal in their last eleven games.
The only time they got to the Conference final, they won it and then went ahead to win the MLS Cup final for their first time and only in franchise history. Making it this far this season has already been a team effort and there are many players that have contributed to the success of Columbus Crew.
Ethan Finlay is definitely one of the best players for the Crew this season. With 12 goals and 13 assists in the season, he can be named the best man of the team for the squad in the attacking third of the field. When it comes to goal scoring, Kei Kamara is way ahead of him with 22 so far this season.
Federico Higuain, Gonzalo's brother is also a man to take into account. He has never won an MLS playoff game but feels that with Columbus Crew, that is a possibility. Thanks to him, Columbus crew is heading into MAPFRE Stadium in Ohio with that very important away goal.
WATCH: Higuain's game equalizer at Montreal
Centro desde la izquierda, Drogba con un pobre rechazo y Federico Higuaín no perdona. #MLSCupPlayoffs https://t.co/wYcexDJh1O
— Fútbol MLS (@futbolMLS) November 2, 2015
WATCH:
Match details, result and original broadcast info
Columbus Crew 3 - 1 CF Montréal
November 8, 2015 5:00pmColumbus Crew Stadium, Columbus, United StatesThis match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
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