Montreal Impact secured a 3-1 victory over Cincinnati at Saputo Stadium in the 27th round of the MLS regular season on Saturday night. The result lifted the hosts to 24 points from 27 games, while Cincinnati remained on 33 points after 26 matches. And here's the thing — this was the sort of match we gave ourselves a 44 per cent chance for back before kick-off. Not because the odds were in their favour, but because Montreal had been building something quieter.
Daniel Rios opened the scoring in the 25th minute, finishing a move that had stretched the back line. Tom Barlow doubled the lead six minutes after the break, but it was Prince-Osei Owusu who changed the complexion of the game. He converted a penalty in the 72nd minute before adding another in the 75th, ending a barren spell for the academy graduate. By then, Cincinnati had thrown everything at the hosts.
Cincinnati dominated possession at 55 per cent and registered 82 attacks against Montreal's 51. They created four big chances to three, but their shot accuracy of 22 per cent meant most of those went begging. The visitors completed 541 passes to Montreal's 455, yet their expected goals of 1.97 sat just below the hosts' 2.07. To be fair, this is what happens when you have the ball but cannot find the right moment to strike.
Montreal's shape held firm through a storm of pressure. They won 20 aerial duels — the same as Cincinnati — but made more clearances, 27 to 15. Their goalkeeper saved three shots while his counterpart managed two. The match was decided in those three or four moments, not in the numbers that followed. The rest was simply noise.
The result keeps Montreal in 15th place while Cincinnati sit one rung higher in 9th. Both sides had shown vulnerability in recent weeks — Montreal lost three of their last five before this win, while Cincinnati had conceded six goals in two matches. This was not a statement victory, but it was one that mattered. Montreal got over the line when it counted.
