CF Montreal put together the top regular season in their history and now look to start a postseason run when they host Orlando City in the opening round of the playoffs on Sunday night.
CF Montreal (20-9-5, 65 points) earned the second seed in the Eastern Conference and set franchise records for victories, standings points and goals scored (63). Only Los Angeles FC and the Philadelphia Union (67 each) had more regular-season points.
The club closed the regular season with a sparkling 11-1-3 run and is a heavy favorite to knock off seventh-seeded Orlando City (14-14-6, 48 points).
But midfielder Samuel Piette emphasized the focus must be on winning the first game and not on making a sustained dash.
“We have to be calm about our goals in the playoffs,” Piette told reporters. “We proved it to the whole league, but especially to ourselves that we are able to go all the way. But you have to stay calm, not to look too much to the future and take it one game at a time.
“We know very well that anything can happen in a playoff game. We’re going to focus on Orlando first.”
Orlando City slipped into the playoffs by beating the Columbus Crew 2-1 in a winner-take-all matchup on Decision Day last Sunday.
The Lions dropped four of their previous five games prior to the crucial victory. Head coach Oscar Pareja is hoping the momentum will carry over into the postseason.
“I think it is even more important to think about advancing and that is where we are now,” Pareja told reporters. “The group is very optimistic and very confident going to Montreal and fighting for our ticket to the next round.”
Orlando City split two 2022 matchups with Montreal, including a 2-0 home win in their season opener Feb. 27. Montreal won the rematch 4-1 on May 7.
Montreal is in the main draw of the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The club participated in the play-in round in 2020 but lost to the New England Revolution.
Orlando City is part of the field for the third straight season. The Lions were eliminated by Nashville SC 3-1 in last season’s first round.
Forward Ercan Kara leads Orlando City with 11 goals while midfielder Facundo Torres has nine goals and 10 assists.
Romell Quioto has 15 goals for Montreal while fellow forward Kei Kamara and midfielder Djordje Mihailovic have nine goals apiece.
–Field Level Media
