PREVIEW – CF Montreal will face a familiar opponent in Forge FC on May 24 in the Canadian Championship at Saputo Stadium (Stade Saputo). Both teams have met each other in the Canadian Championship twice, with Montreal winning both times.
CF Montreal vs Forge FC: Expectations on Wednesday
Une place en finale du Championnat canadien à l’enjeu.
A spot in the #CanChamp final on the line.
Tous au stade. Achetez vos billets maintenant 🎟️ >>> https://t.co/wtXvSKsKmX#CFMTL pic.twitter.com/RdYgI5ybrr
— CF Montréal (@cfmontreal) May 21, 2023
CF Montreal (3-0-2)
After winning five straight games in all competitions, including a Canadian Championship game win over Toronto FC, Montreal is now struggling, losing two games in a row, including a recent loss to the New York Red Bulls. They are right now 13 in the MLS Eastern Conference and will look to get back into form on Wednesday. This is what head coach Hernán Losada said about the loss to the Red Bulls in Elias Grigoriadis article for the Globe and Mail:
“I don’t think the defending has been good enough, not just our main three but everybody as a collective. As a team, we have to be harder to play against,” he said. “New England is more tough opposition, on the road again, so we can’t let their main men get on the ball easily and just focus on coming away with points on the road.”
CF Montreal’s Romell Quioto leads the team with three goals while Aaron Herrera leads the team with two assists. Quioto is a player to watch out for as he is one of Montreal’s best players and can hurt Hamilton on the attack.
Forge FC (4-0-1)
Forge FC is currently first in the Canadian Premier League with three wins and three draws. Hamilton will feel like they missed chances as they had the majority of the scoring chances against Vancouver FC. However, they were not able to convert, and as a result, drew with the expansion team (source: Forge FC):
“We got to take our chances,” Forge FC head coach Bobby Smyrniotis. “Sometimes we need to be more aggressive about it.”
The @Gatorade Performance of the Match goes to Kyle Bekker after the @ForgeFCHamilton captain provided a goal and assist in a 3-2 victory 🔨#CanPL pic.twitter.com/ChOboE54NT
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) May 13, 2023
The team based in Hamilton got to the Canadian Championship semi-finals stage after defeating FC Laval from PLSQ 3-0. They then won a thrilling game in penalties against Atletico Ottawa at home in penalties. A notable player is former Toronto FC player, Jordan Hamilton, who has two goals and one assist for the team. There is most notably also former TFC player, Kyle Bekker, who is the captain of the team, and played a big role in the Hamilton team winning three North Star Shields in the first four years of the CPL’s existence.
Injuries to CF Montreal, Head-to-Head, and Storylines
CF Montreal has two injuries. This includes both Samuel Piette and Mason Toye, who has been out since April 3. Piette’s injury is unknown while Toye is currently dealing with a torn meniscus (source: transfermarkt).
Both teams have faced each other twice before. The first time these teams met was at Tim Hortons Field on October 27, 2021, where Montreal won the game in penalties in the Canadian Championship semi-finals stage. They then met each other again at Saputo Stadium in the quarterfinals of the Canadian Championship. This game was not so close as Montreal easily defeated Hamilton 3-0.
Since the modern Canadian Championship was created in 2008, CF Montreal has won the Canadian Championship five times in its history. This is while Forge FC’s best result was making the final of the 2021 Canadian Championship.
Choinière v Choinière, ce mercredi au Stade Saputo!
Ready for another Choinière showdown at Stade Saputo.
Achetez vos billets maintenant 🎟️ >>> https://t.co/wtXvSKsKmX#CFMTL pic.twitter.com/oNTfzeRJFG
— CF Montréal (@cfmontreal) May 22, 2023
Another storyline will be the Choiniere brothers (David Choinière and Mathieu Choinière), who will be facing each other again in the Canadian Championship. This is what David said about his mom in the Marty Thompson Canadian Premier League article before the 2021 Canadian Championship game:
“Mom said she was going to wear a Forge jersey and CF Montreal scarf, or something like that,” David joked CanPL.ca before the match.
This will be another special game for the brothers as they will face each other once again in a highly competitive matchup with high stakes in Montreal on Wednesday.
Predictions and Time of the CF Montreal vs Forge FC Game
Predictions: CF Montreal 3 Forge FC 1
READ MORE: CPL and CEBL: The Similarities and Differences of Both Leagues
Unfortunately, it will be very hard to see Hamilton get a victory over Montreal. Yes, Hamilton is unbeaten, but they are playing on the road and Montreal before losing their last two games, were in good form. Hamilton does have the capabilities to win the game but has not capitalized on their scoring opportunities in some notable games like the 2021 Canadian Championship Final.
The game starts on Wednesday, May. 24 at 7:00 p.m. ET. It will be shown live on OneSoccer and Telus. The winner of this match will travel to British Columbia to face either Pacific FC (representing Victoria) or the defending Voyageurs Cup champions, the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, in the 2023 Canadian Championship Final.
Photo Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports on May 25, 2022, of a David Choinière Headshot and a Mathieu Choinière Headshot.
