Montreal Impact vs D.C. United : Player ratings

To begin, let’s all hope and pray that Justin Mapp can make a speedy recovery. Nobody ever wants to see something like that.  If you didn’t catch the game, Mapp went down hard and fell on his elbow, dislocating it in the process. He was in a great deal of pain and, all in all, it was a pretty scary moment.

As far as the game is concerned, it was a pretty lackluster performance. Both teams were fairly cagey throughout, with both defenses putting in solid performances. D.C.’s offensive movements were more refined however, and were the better team in midfield.

The 1-0 result was fairly indicative of the match’s proceedings, though the Impact came very close to equalizing. Overall it wasn’t a terrible performance by IMFC, but Klopas definitely still has some tinkering to do with his lineup. While the backline seems pretty solid, I could see a lot of shuffling of the deck before our next contest.

Coach: Frank Klopas – 7/10

I thought the substitutions came a bit late. Both Porter and Alexander impressed when they came on, and I would have liked to have seen them come on at about the 60’ minute mark. I thought Klopas started the right line-up though, with Camara, Mallace and Jack-Mac all being good changes.

K: Evan Bush – 5.5/10

Was slow to react on D.C.’s ball over the top on the goal, but was not completely to blame. Was particularly weak on goal kicks and moving the ball in general. Didn’t have much to do in the contest, but looked shaky at times despite the inactivity.

CB: Laurent Ciman – 6.5/10

Ciman was okay but wasn’t as sharp as he was against Pachuca. Tackled and anticipated well enough, but was a little too slow on certain occasions in reacting to pressure. Still needs to adjust to the faster paced, north/south style of MLS.

CB: Bakary Soumare – 7/10

A decent game for the Mali-product. Thought he was one of the few bright spots for the Impact. That said, he was very slow to react on the D.C. goal (though he wasn’t the only one). Also, just seconds later, he was caught very flat-footed in the box on the Pontius header. Still thought the good out-weighed the bad, though.

LB: Donny Toia – 7.5/10

Toia was once again strong in his role at left back for the Impact. His speed and back-tracking was on display once again, and seemed rarely out of position. Besides a slow start in the first match against Pachuca, has been one of the best Impact players on the pitch.

RB: Hassoun Camara 8/10

In what was a pretty forgetful match for Montréal, Camara was my man of the match. Was strong in the tackle, pressed well, and like Toia, rarely looked out of position. Thought his effort level was much higher than most of his teammates.

DM: Nigel Reo-Coker 5.5/10

Considering the number of touches he had, Reo-Coker was underwhelming, rarely doing much more than the minimum.  Could have moved the ball a lot quicker on counter movements, and often missed his passes entirely. Defensively I felt like he was far too lackadaisical. If he wants to be successful at DM he’ll need to be far more scrappy and aggressive.

DM: Calum Mallace – 6.5/10

An okay first start for Mallace. Was the more energetic of the IMFC midfielders, but didn’t provide enough impetus in moving the ball quickly on attack. I found that defensively he was solid in the first half, but like the rest of the Impact, his marking was suspect in the second half.

LM: Dilly Duka 6/10

Definitely Duka’s worst outing of the year.  Had plenty of opportunities with the ball in dangerous areas, but did very little with them. After watching the game, I wonder if it won’t be long before we see Duka back in a central position. Taking players on 1v1 doesn’t really seem to be his best asset, and it showed in Saturday’s tilt.

CAM: Ignacio Piatti – 5.5/10

Nacho was just not on his game against D.C. United. Didn’t have the cutting edge and dynamic first touch that we’re used to seeing, and like Duka, was fairly wasteful in the final third.

RM: Justin Mapp 6.5/10

Was the better of the attacking mids, getting out into open space well and distributing fairly efficiently. That said, he failed to bring much creativity on the wing, and his crosses were mostly subpar.

Striker: Jack MacInerney – 6/10

Nothing special from Jack-Mac in this contest. In his defense he didn’t get much service, but was largely ineffectual in his attempts to put pressure on the United backline. Overall, he wasn’t very implicated in the Impact’s offensive movements.

Striker: Dominic Oduro – 4.5/10

Once again, was very unimpressed with Oduro on the pitch. Seemed a bit like a chicken with his head chopped off, running around without much of a plan. Klopas probably would have been better off putting in Tissot, who is a more well-rounded player.

Forward: Cameron Porter – 7/10

Porter came on late but immediately gave the Impact a spark. Was much more implicated up front than MacInerney. Had an attempt on net after winning a cross in the box, and attempted a few runs. Was the most dangerous of the IMFC forwards on the day.

Forward: Eric Alexander – 7.5/10

Really liked what I saw from Alexander in what was a small simple size. His passes had a lot of zip on them, and his awareness on the pitch was excellent.