FRISCO, TEXAS — It’s been four years since CF Montréal and FC Dallas played each other: a 2-2 draw back in early March of 2020.
Dallas has only lost once to the Montréalers, but Saturday will be the first time the club faces Montréal’ new coach and new players.
Montréal’s first match under Laurent Courtois was a scoreless one against Orlando City SC, with debuts from players like Matías Cóccaro, Dominic Iankov, Ruan and Josef Martínez.
While the Molntréalers started with strong chances in the first 10 minutes, they had to play defense—and a lot of it for the next 80.
They had conceded a lot of goals in the preseason, so holding the game to a scoreless draw in their first of six straight road games was something CF Montréal was actually happy about.
Montréal has bright spots in Bryce Duke, Iankov and Cóccaro, but FC Dallas may have more than a few of their own special players available for the night.
Petar Musa, Jesús Ferreira, Paxton Pomyka and Tsiki Ntsabeleng are all likely to be available for some minutes: Pomyka and Ferreira did not see action in the home opener against the San Jose Earthquakes, but both fully participated in this week’s trainings, while Ntsabeleng obtained his Green Card and Musa, who now has a work visa, has gotten in “three-to-four” trainings since Tuesday, making him viable for around 45-to-60 minutes in Saturday’s game according to Head Coach Nico Estévez.
Will the club and its fans get to see Musa play in-person for the first time? Will CF Montréal get their first three points and first win over FC Dallas at Toyota Stadium?
Find out on Saturday, March 2 at 7:30 p.m.
