And Jonathan Sirois getting up.
At the end of a difficult evening at the office, CF Montreal must say thank you to its goalkeeper. The Quebecer was imperial against the ferocious attack of Real Salt Lake at the Saputo stadium on Saturday, and allowed his club to limit the best team in the West to a 0-0 draw.
“We know how decisive he can be for us,” noted Laurent Courtois after the meeting. We are almost surprised, sometimes, by certain goals that we concede, or by actions where we think we are so comfortable now. We know he can go very high. The stockings need to be lower. »
While Sirois brought the crowd at the Montreal venue to its feet – in front of a full house this time again – the fact remains that the Bleu-blanc-noir was very weak, with the ball at their feet. And although the return of many injured players, including Matías Cóccaro, helped change the shape of the match in the second half, his lack of success with the leather, in general, was glaring.
Fortunately, the Jailer may have had his best night of the season. Season during which he had not yet reached the level of his 2023 campaign. That said, in the last weeks, we felt that Sirois was much more confident than before. Did his non-selection with Canada for the Copa América whip him?
The goalkeeper stood like a wall on no less than six great chances for the Utah men.
There were his two beautiful saves in quick succession, in the 24th minute, with a second shot from close range. His good block in the 70th, ahead of MLS top scorer Cristian “Chicho” Arango (16 goals). Then his successes, in the 77th and 79th, which consolidated his very good performance.
His club really needed it. It was more conclusive with the respective entries of Cóccaro, Kwadwo Opoku and Mason Toye, from the 61st. What the CFM missed, the Uruguayan! Absent since mid-April – he missed 11 matches, all competitions combined – he showed upon his return all the will, all the passion that make him a crowd favourite.
“[Their arrivals] brought a bit of chaos,” Sirois analyzed. There was a lot more space on the pitch. […] It also gave energy to the supporters. The first time Mati touched the ball, I felt like we almost scored! »
Cóccaro’s madness quickly crossed the line: he received a yellow card two minutes after coming on, for arguing too much in front of the official. Otherwise, both Opoku and Toye had their chances, but were stopped by RSL’s defense, and their own bad luck.
And on Opoku specifically, who missed a golden chance in the 87th: “These are glimpses. When he is in better shape, it will produce interesting things. »
Moreover, Montreal played in this match with dangerous feverishness in possession, Victor Wanyama overwhelmed in the middle and a certain ineffectiveness in the opposing area, despite the honorable performance of Sunusi Ibrahim up front.
But if the visitors’ attackers were muzzled, it was mainly thanks to Montreal’s increasingly tight defense and its standard-bearers Fernando Álvarez and Joel Waterman. The latter also learned this Saturday evening that he was going to join the Canadian team for the Copa América. We will come back to this in a future screen.
“Álvarez, I thought he was really solid,” noted his coach. He crosses thresholds. He still needs to synchronize with his comrades, but in terms of individual behavior and crisis management, it’s starting to be really consistent. It’s good. »
This is precisely where we felt the most solid, the young Colombian. When the ball is around him, he rarely makes the wrong decision. We have seen him in constant rise since the start of the season.
“He works very hard in training,” Sirois said. Very open-minded, to criticism of coaches and also other players. […] It makes work and chemistry easier. »
“He is someone who is increasingly asserting himself on and off the pitch, with his personality within the group. I’m very happy for him. »