Surging CF Montreal looks to clinch playoff berth against Charlotte FC

CF Montreal has surged above the Major League Soccer playoff line with a late-season unbeaten run.

Now the players will try to keep their foot on the gas and clinch their spot in the post-season.

“The most important thing is not to get complacent, not to get comfortable where we're at,” goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois said Friday. “We know, especially in this league, how everything could change after one game.”

Montreal (10-12-10) won its third straight game by defeating Atlanta United 2-1 on Wednesday — its first road victory since March 10 — and climbed to eighth in the Eastern Conference ahead of the penultimate Matchday at seventh-place Charlotte FC on Saturday.

Laurent Courtois’s side has 40 points, three clear of ninth-place Toronto FC, 10th-place Philadelphia Union and 11th-place D.C. United. Toronto, however, only has one game remaining on the calendar.

A victory on Saturday would guarantee Montreal a playoff berth provided one of D.C. or Philadelphia doesn't win their respective matches. If Montreal draws, it can still clinch if either D.C. or Philadelphia loses.

The eighth- and ninth-place teams face off in a wild-card game on Oct. 22. The winner would meet Argentine superstar Lionel Messi and Supporters’ Shield winners Inter Miami CF in a best-of-three series beginning Oct. 25.

Sirois hopes Montreal can secure its place before meeting New York City FC at home on MLS Decision Day on Oct. 19, which follows an international break, but he also isn’t keen on settling for a wild-card spot.

With Charlotte (12-11-9) five points ahead in the standings, he believes Montreal should be gunning for seventh.

“The mentality I'd like to go into Saturday's game with is the one where we're trying to go for the seventh place, where we're trying to go and win in Charlotte and make that possible,” Sirois said.

Defender George Campbell doesn’t believe Montreal should change its approach now that they're the ones defending a playoff spot instead of chasing it.

"We can't get complacent and overconfident or cocky, but we have to know that we're a good team and we can compete with anyone,” Campbell said.

Amid a roller-coaster season that featured a nine-game winless streak, Montreal is hitting its stride at the perfect moment, earning 12 out of a possible 15 points in its last five matches.

Sirois said players struggled to find consistency while learning the system of their first-year head coach, but now they’re running on all cylinders.

“Each player is doing what they need to do and performing very well individually, which makes us very strong together,” he said.

It helps when one of those individuals is the team’s striker delivering on what he’s paid to do.

Josef Martinez, a league MVP in 2018, is turning back the clock of late with five goals in three outings, including both goals against Atlanta — his former club.

“He can do and execute stuff that nobody else can, and when he’s like this with the proper service, he’s unstoppable,” Courtois said after Wednesday’s win. “He’s one of the most exciting players I’ve ever seen, it’s an honour for me to coach him.”

After juggling his squad much of the season, Courtois has leaned on a nearly identical starting 11 the last three games.

That will likely have to change on Saturday with Montreal playing its third contest in eight days.

"The turnaround is short. There are players who are performing and have a lot of minutes, and there are also players who are fresh," he said. "We'll try to make the least risky decisions possible."

Montreal’s strong run of form started with a 2-1 home victory against a defensively stout Charlotte side on Sept. 14. Sirois expects a more “aggressive” match on the road at Bank of America Stadium.

“Tomorrow, Charlotte might have a bit more possession, wanting to attack us a bit more,” he said. “At the end of the day, there might be a bit more pressure on them because they know that if we win, we’re two points behind them.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 4, 2024.

Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press