Philadelphia Union will wrap up their three-match road trip this Saturday against Montreal Impact. Kick-off for Saturday’s Eastern Conference clash is set for 3 p.m. ET and will be televised on PHL17 with JP Dellacamera and Tommy Smyth on the call.
Philadelphia enters this weekend with a record of 2-5-2 and eight points. The Union sit in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, trailing Montreal Impact by a point, who have a record of 3-7-0 and nine points.
This will be the first meeting of the season between Montreal and Philadelphia. The clubs will reunite later in the season when Montreal visits Talen Energy Stadium on September 15th.
The Union will look to their playmakers that have had success against Montreal in their careers to create offense for the visiting team. For Philadelphia, it will start with their man up top CJ Sapong. Since joining the Union, Sapong has played in eight matches against Montreal, scoring two goals and dishing out three assists.
Another man on the pitch who has had success against Montreal, particularly in Canada has been winger David Accam. This will be Accam’s first match against Montreal as a member of Philadelphia Union. When Accam was terrorizing Montreal with Chicago, the outside threat recorded two goals and two assists in just five matches. Both goals and one of those assists have come at Stade Saputo Stadium in Montreal.
Montreal is led by Rémi Garde, who is in his first year as Impact First Team Head Coach and Director of Player Personnel after being appointed on November 8, 2017. Garde, 51, won the Coupe de France and the Trophée des Champions in 2012 at the helm of Olympique Lyonnais, acting as head coach and technical director of Lyonfrom 2011 to 2014.
On the pitch, the Union will need to look out for Montreal playmaker Ignacio Piatti. The Argentine has been sensational since joining the Impact. Last season Piatti was named Montreal’s Most Valuable Player and received the Giuseppe Saputo Trophy for the third consecutive season, after leading the Impact with 17 goals, while adding six assists in 28 games, including 26 starts, and 2,368 minutes. In his career against Philadelphia, Piatti has recorded four goals and three assists in six meetings.
The Union will need to keep a close eye on Piatti and the rest of the Montreal squad this Saturday. Kick-off for this Eastern Conference showdown is an afternoon special, set for 3 p.m. After this match the club will return home for a match against Real Salt Lake at Talen Energy Stadium.
