TORONTO – In the end, it was the Montreal Impact who got the last laugh at the so-called "Funhouse."
After Toronto FC's supporters raised a funhouse-themed tifo, their biggest rivals snatched a 1-0 victory at BMO Field on Saturday night, despite going down to 10 men. The result halted a 12-game winless run against TFC at BMO Field and got Montreal's playoff chase back on track.
For a while, it appeared all of that would be impossible after Calum Mallace was shown a red card for a collision with Steven Beitashour in the 43rd minute.
But Mauro Biello's side held firm, denied Toronto at every turn, and set the stage for a silky 73rd-minute winner from Ignacio "Nacho" Piatti.
“The win is massive,” Biello said. “They're a good team, probably the best in the league. We did a good job, we were organized. We didn't give them much space to break us down, and then we were clinical. Nacho was clinical when we needed him and scored a massive goal. The effort that the players put in was exceptional.”
“We responded well,” Biello added. “It was harsh to give that [red] card in a game like this, especially because it was our foul, a little melee in the middle of the field... could have easily separated the players, give two yellows, and play goes on.”
Mallace, like his coach, did not think the red was warranted.
“We were on a quick break and they did a professional foul, took down our player,” Mallace said. “I saw we had numbers going forward so I was trying to get the ball as fast as possible to get it in play. [Beitashour] did the opposite, he was trying to keep it away from us. We were both going pretty fast and just collided.”
The victory was not without cost, as Didier Drogba left the match injured in the 55th minute.
“He said he felt his hamstring a little bit on the last play there before he came out,” said Biello. “He'll be evaluated, we'll see to what extent it is.”
But even at that price, Montreal head home happy.
“It feels good, especially the way we won it, being a man down,” said onetime TFC player Dominic Oduro, who set up Piatti for the goal. “It is not easy to go to a powerhouse like this and with a man down win a game. . . . That makes it really special.”
