Vancouver scores a come-from-behind 2-1 win in Montreal
The Canadian Press
The pass from team captain Martin Nash may not have been perfect, but Luca Bellisomo's shot was, and the Vancouver Whitecaps earned a huge victory in a city where they don't win very often.
Bellisomo scored off a screaming volley shot in stoppage time to give the Whitecaps a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over the Montreal Impact on Wednesday in front of 11,949 fans at Saputo Stadium.
With the game winding down and fans already heading for the exits, the ball came to Nash just outside the penalty area. He sent a high pass across to Bellisomo at the top of the box, and he drilled a shot past unsuspecting Montreal goalkeeper Srdjan Djekanovic just inside the near post.
"The cross came a bit short so I thought I might be able to take it on the first [touch] and I did," Bellisomo said of the pass from Nash, which gave him 100 career points with the Whitecaps. "I'm sure he put it right where he wanted to. It was perfect in the end."
Greg Janicki had earlier tied the game for the Whitecaps with a goal in the 66th minute, allowing Vancouver to nullify a horrible first half where they allowed the Impact to control the play and generate numerous chances to score.
"I thought we were very passive in the first half and got punished early in the game with a goal," said Whitecaps head coach Teitur Thordarson. "At halftime I told them I wanted a totally different attitude to the game, I wanted them to take risks." 4 wins in 20 games in Montreal
That's when Thordarson switched to a two-striker formation, which ultimately made all the difference in giving Vancouver only its fourth win in its last 20 games in Montreal.
The Whitecaps (6-2-6) extended their lead over the Impact (4-4-5) atop the NASL Conference standings of the United States Soccer Federation Division-2 to seven points, though Montreal still has one game in hand.
"To come and beat Montreal in Montreal is never an easy thing," Bellisomo said. "It feels great to know we did that and extended our lead on them."
Tony Donatelli scored his fourth of the season in the game's third minute for the Impact but Montreal could not put the game away early, thanks in large part to the play of Vancouver goalkeeper Jay Nolly.
In the first half it looked as though the Impact, who outshot Vancouver 8-1 in the opening 45 minutes, were poised to climb within a point in the standings with a win over the Whitecaps. Instead, the deficit is now seven points.
"It's incredible, we're seven points behind a team that is not better than us," said Impact head coach Marc Dos Santos. "We were a very exciting team in the first half and we could have come out of it ahead 2-0 or 3-0 easily. But it didn't happen." Other 3 meetings ended in draws
It was the fourth meeting this season between the Canadian rivals but the first to produce a winner. Two games in the Canadian Nutrilite Championship and another in regular season play all ended in draws.
The Impact thoroughly dominated the first half but had to settle for the lone goal from Donatelli.
And it came quickly.
Leonardo DiLorenzo lofted a free kick into the Vancouver penalty area and Donatelli rose above the group of Whitecap defenders surrounding him to head the ball toward the goal. The ball lofted high in the air, over a back-pedalling Nolly and inside the near post for an early 1-0 Impact lead.
Montreal kept coming, maintaining possession in the Vancouver for nearly the entire first half but failing to build on its lead.
The closest Montreal came to scoring actually came courtesy of Janicki, who headed a slow bouncer past Nolly and toward his own goal, only to have Nolly scramble back and kick it out of harm's way just before crossing the goal-line.
The Impact generated numerous quality chances of their own, but the best opportunity was in the 28th minute when striker Peter Byers was sent in alone in the penalty area. He patiently held the ball to get Nolly out of position, and with a Whitecaps defender rushing toward him Byers shot at an empty net but missed.
Though it was his players who failed to convert on the chances they created, Dos Santos took the blame for the lack of finish in the first half.
"I choose the players that are out there," he said. "If the Impact loses, it's the leader of the team in the room that should be blamed, and that's me."
After sitting back and watching Montreal control the play in the first half, Vancouver came out for the second half ready to play and erase a 1-0 deficit.
But the Whitecaps waited over 20 minutes to get that goal when Janicki found a loose ball in front of the Impact net, spun around and fired a roller that beat Djekanovic.
