Two goals from Ali Gerba powered the Montreal Impact to a 3-1 win over the Seattle Sounders in front of 11, 796 spectators. Darko Kolic also scored for Montreal in the dying seconds of the game. Ryan Edwards got the goal for Seattle.
With five regulars away with the Canadian National team, the Montreal Impact should have never stood a chance against the very hot Seattle Sounders but mix in the fact that the Sounders played 24hours previously in Minnesota and the terrific play of forward Ali Gerba and we got a very entertaining game played at a high tempo. Gerba, who played the night before in Vancouver against Honduras, was recalled from the National team to compensate for the loss of striker Eduardo Sebrango who broke his foot in the game against Portland on Thursday. The 23 year old striker made all the difference scoring two terrific goals and giving the Sounders defense trouble all game long.
Montreal was flying out of the gate with chance after chance in the first half. In the 4th minute, Antonio Ribeiro spotted a streaking Gerba and fed him a pass in the box. Sounders Kepper Preston Burpo also raced to the ball and blocked Gerba's weak attempt. Just three minutes later Gerba scored his first goal when he fought two defenders in the Sounders' box and shot from a terrible angle but the ball went off a Sounders player past a surprised Burpo. Although the ball went off a Seattle player the fourth official ruled that Gerba should be credited with the goal. Montreal 1, Seattle 0.
Seattle were not about to give in. Just four minutes after the Montreal goal the Sounders equalized when Edwards headed in a ball that came from a corner. The ball was crossed into the box and headed by Zach Scott to Edwards who headed it past Impact keeper Andrew Olivieri. Montreal 1, Seattle 1.
The Impact kept up the pressure on Seattle. In the 15th minute, Ali made a back pass to Ze Roberto who shot directly at Burpo. Mauro Biello pounced on the rebound but shot wide. Just two minutes later Roberto tested Burpo again from the right of the box but the Sounders' keeper made the stop. In the 18th minute Montreal almost took the lead when a streaking Gerba was fed a pass that was too far ahead of him. Burpo came out of his box and headed the ball into the air. The ball went to Biello who shot at the net but Burpo scrambled back in time to make the save. Montreal pinned Seattle in their zone for the next few minutes but did not manage any shots until Lars Lyssand sent a low direct shot at Burpo in the 22nd minute. Gerba continued his relentless attack on the Sounders but his header in the 27th minute went well over the bar. Montreal threatened again in the 35th minute when a bullet by Lyssand went right to Gerba who accidentally knocked it out of danger.
In the 41st minute following a mad scramble in front of Burpo, the ball made its way to Biello but the Impact forward blasted it well over the bar. The Impact was not to be denied. Just a few seconds before half-time, Gerba sent a 40 yard free kick into the bottom right corner past Burpo for his second goal of the night. Burpo, who was facing the sun, looked completely out of position. Gerba was yellow carded following the goal for lifting his jersey over his head during his celebratory run. Montreal 2, Seattle 1.
The Impact got off to a quick start in the 2nd half when in the 46th minute, Ribeiro came tearing in on the left side and crossed a terrific ball to Gerba who headed it just a foot over the bar. The two sides played very defensively for most of the half but Montreal had some chances. The best chance for the Sounders came in the 69th minute when Billy Sleeth sent a pass to Welton Melo who sent a low hard shot at Olivieri but the Impact keeper smothered the ball. Gerba had a final chance in the 82nd minute when he was fed a wild cross by Ribeiro. Unfortunately he struggled to control the ball and sent it over the bar. Ribeiro went down hard after a collision with a Sounders player in the 90th minute and had to be taken off the field on a stretcher. His replacement, Darko Kolic, only played the four minutes of injury time but scored the Impact's final goal when he was fed a pass by Roberto and tucked the ball under Burpo and into the net. Montreal 3, Seattle 1.
Game notes: Five Impact regulars (keeper Greg Sutton, defenders Gabriel Gervais and Adam Braz and midfielders Sandro Grande and Patrick Leduc) are with the Canadian National team to compete for the Gold Cup, the championship of North America, Central America and the Carribean. Gerba will rejoin the National team immediately and will compete against Costa Rica on Thursday, Canada's first game of the tournament. The Impact called up two players from the Thunder Bay Chill of the PDL (Premier Development League), forward Doco Wesseh and midfielder Mike Kolinski, in order to fill the roster in the absences of the six with the National team. Both will stay with the Impact for at least two games. Third string goalkeeper Gerry Argento was also recalled from the Laval Conquerants of the LSEQ (Quebec's Elite soccer league) in order to back up Olivieri.
Lineups:
Montreal: Olivieri (GK), Pizzolitto, Cann, Vincello, Lyssand, DiTullio (Fronimadis 76), Fukasawa, Roberto, Ribeiro (Kolic 90), Gerba, Biello (Mert 79). Substitutes not used: Argento (GK), Kolinski, Wesseh.
Seattle: Burpo (GK), Sleeth, Edwards, Graham, Scott (Sturm 76), Somoza (Chacon 58), Sakuda, Klaas, Whitfield, Levesque, Melo (Wiesner 73). Substitutes not used: Ward (GK).
Scoring:
Montreal: Gerba (7 and 45), Kolic (90+)
Seattle: Edwards (11)
Cautions:
Montreal: Gerba (45), Ribeiro (67)
Seattle-None
Expulsions: None
Attendance: 11,796
Conditions: Sunny and warm (28 degrees Celsius). Field dry.
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