MONTREAL – The Impact were unbeaten in their previous five home games entering Sunday's national television bout against New York City FC. Despite that run of form, a 3-1 loss to New York City FC Sunday left Montreal with as many defeats as victories at Stade Saputo this season.
The Impact have four wins, two losses and three ties at home, but two of those victories came early in the season at Olympic Stadium.
“I think it’s not the best thing to see from our point of view,” Impact striker Didier Drogba said about the Impact's 2-2-3 record at Stade Saputo. “But knowing that we lost as many games as we won here and we’re still in a good position in the league, I think it means that we’re doing something good somewhere else. So away from home we’re playing a bit better because we’re getting more results because the teams are helping a bit more.”
NYCFC led 2-0 at the half, but that deficit could have easily been reversed if not for a pair of huge saves by goalkeeper Josh Saunders on Drogba and a pair of defensive breakdowns by the Impact that yielded goals from MLS Golden Boot leader David Villa and rookie Jack Harrison.
“I think we’re the team that makes the most individual errors that lead to goals,” Impact coach Mauro Biello said. “You can’t give up soft goals.”
Montreal, which were undefeated in their previous six games, are fourth in the Eastern Conference with 26 points from 20 games.
“When goals don’t come as easily as we think they should we get frustrated and impatient and then our shape gets thrown out of whack and we give up easy chances,” Impact goalkeeper Evan Bush said. “That has to change at home. We have to be aggressive and take advantage of our opportunities for sure, but we need to be a little more pessimistic when it comes to defending and transition.”
Drogba returned after missing the past three games because of a thigh injury.
“I feel good,” Drogba said. “Of course, I didn't play for two weeks so it was difficult to come back, but as you could see I was fighting on all the balls that I got. I think the first 10-15 minutes I was a bit sloppy, but then after that I was a bit better.”
The Impact were without their two other AT&T MLS All-Stars, defender Laurent Ciman, who is recovering from a sprained ankle, and leading scorer Ignacio Piatti, who served a one-game suspension.
“As a team, it’s always difficult to concede goals because you know that the more you concede, the more difficult it is to win a game,” Drogba said. “But I think that it’s too easy to emphasize on the defense and I think as a team there are things we can do better. If we want to go far in the playoffs there’s a lot of things we have to improve. And the team is young so we’re always learning from our mistakes, and the experienced players are trying to help but it’s not easy.”
