With Sporting KC heading back on the road to face Montreal on Saturday. I caught up with Impact beat writer for MLSsoccer.com, Olivier Tremblay, to preview the match. The match will kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT on Saturday with live coverage available on KMCI (38 the Spot), SKCTV, Sports Radio 810 WHB, and La Gran D 1340 AM.
JF: What is Montreal's form heading into this match?
OT: They are a changed team from both games against Kansas City. Especially the game in Montreal, I thought they had a good opportunity in that match but being down a man for more than 60 minutes obviously helped was tough. It was a tough task but since then they have really tried to get a lot of things right defensively. They have a few guys up front like Jack McInerney and Marco Vaio who can take advantage of one opportunity to give them a chance to win. If they play good defensively, they give themselves a chance to at least get out of there with a point which is better than most games they played this season. Matteo Ferrari has been very good since he came back from an injury and he is back in the middle. They are able to put in two or three experienced guys in the defense that really help them. As you can see, they were able to work to get a point than work there but overall it wasn’t really that bad. They have improved a little bit but they need a streak at this point because they are only six points from a playoff spot but it can go down hill pretty quick.
JF: How has Jack McInerney adjusted since arriving from Philadelphia and how has the partnershp with Marco Di Vaio developed?
OT: It’s still a work in progress for a large portion of the season. Di Vaio was either injured or was struggling to find his form. He said recently that he is struggling to find continuity this season and he hasn’t played for four straight games yet this season. What was good about Marco Di Vaio last season, was that he was able to play 90 minute on a regular basis and find the back of the net. McInerney had to play a lot as a lone forward for Montreal. He did well, scored a bunch of goals but these are two guys who really want to make this work and create a partnership that is going to be complementary. When McInerney scored a goal, he looked back at Di Vaio and couldn’t believe he scored. Di Vaio was happy for him because he thinks that McInerney is a guy that really wants to work. You have this veteran guy who wants to help McInerney become a better player and they have similar movements and similar player profiles as well, they can figure out something as well.
JF: What do you take away from the first two meetings between the two sides (4-0 & 3-0 wins by Sporting KC)?
OT: A lot of fun. I thought it was really good seeing those games and seeing the dominance of Sporting Kansas City and seeing how good they were. It was two displays of really high quality from Sporting Kansas City and Montreal weren’t keeping it close to be competitive in those games. They are a changed team a little bit; they are better in dealing with what Sporting Kansas City has to offer. Especially because Sporting Kansas City, for a change, has been dealing with a little bit more injuries like Montreal has been but slowly but surely Montreal has been healing up and everything. But I the X factor for the upcoming game is Dom Dwyer. I could see him being a big part in this game and Montreal is aware of it. But Sporting Kansas City has a lot of guys who can make a difference, guys coming back from the World Cup but to me I expect a lot of Dom Dwyer using those kinds of situations and relish them and that’s what I have in mind for on Saturday.
JF: What will be the key matchups and factors for Saturday's match?
OT: Montreal will probably be playing with two in the middle, that’s what they have been trying to make that Jack and Di Vaio partnership work. It is going to be interesting to see how Sporting KC’s midfield deals with that and how likely Montreal can break forward. It obviously will not be easy to win the possession battle against Sporting Kansas City even at home for Montreal. I think it will be interesting to see how the guys coming back from the World Cup, Matt Besler and Graham Zusi are set to start this game. It will be interesting to see how Montreal can challenge those players after coming back from the World Cup. And dealing with Graham Zusi, the way that Zusi has played against Montreal, to me, he has always been a stand out player with Dom Dwyer. With Montreal’s defense getting tighter, I think it will be interesting to see how Zusi plays with that.
JF: Finally, what are you expecting to see from the match?
OT: I think it will be a tighter game than the previous two. I expect to scoring draw, maybe a 1-1, but I wouldn’t be shocked if any one of these teams got three points. Either way, how Montreal gained and how Sporting KC had to deal with issues, absents and injuries, it’s a different match-up this time around.
