Impact Escape Philadelphia with a Hard Fought Point

Saturday night was the first meeting of the season between the Philadelphia Union and the Montreal Impact at a rain swept PPL Park in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Impact will have mixed emotions leaving Philadelphia with 2-2 draw as they dominated possession for most of the night but could only leave the city of brotherly love with one point. The result leaves Montreal sitting in eighth place in the Eastern Conference sitting just outside a playoff spot.

Bounce Back:

"We played well enough to win, but the positive is that we got a point on the road" - Frank Klopas

After a very poor outing last Wednesday in Toronto the Impact needed to put together a better first half performance, and for the most part they did. Although Montreal gave up the first goal in the 8th-minute after a laser shot by Ayuk found the back of the net the Impact bounced back right away. This is no small feat as the Bleu-Blanc-Noir often have trouble reversing the flow of games (especially on the road). After the Impact gave up the first goal they clawed their way back into the game and dominated possession for the remainder of the first half. The ball possession payed off in the 28th-minute as Ignacio Piatti tied the game with a beautiful strike that found the bottom right hand corner of the net. It was Piatti's first goal for the Impact since June 3, when he scored the game winning goal against the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Jack Mac Strikes Back:

"I got an opportunity and made the best of it to help the team earn a point" - Jack McInereny

After starting the game on the bench, Frank Klopas brought Jack McInerney into the game for Dominic Oduro in the 60th-minute. The substitution payed off and ten minutes later McInerney scored a fantastic goal after beating Philadelphia defender Richie Marquez one-on-one and rocketing home the Impact's second goal of the night. Like Piatti, the last time that McInerney scored was also against the Whitecaps on June 3. The lead did not last for long however as Philadelphia tied the game up a few minutes later; after a hard shot from outside the box from Fabinho, Maurice Edu was in the right place at the right time to tie the game.

Bernier Sees Red:

Très fier de la prestation de l'équipe à l'extérieur. Calme, solidarité et caractère. Retour à domicile pour quelques matchs #IMFC

— Patrice Bernier (@pbernier10) June 28, 2015

Although the game was not that nasty in nature, two players received their marching orders. Impact captain Patrice Bernier received his second yellow of the night in the 67th-minute, leaving the Impact with ten players for the remaining twenty minutes. However, the man advantage only lasted ten minutes for the Union as goal-scorer Ayuk was also sent off for his second yellow.

Whats Next?

The Impact return to Stade Saputo next Saturday to take on MLS newcomers New York City FC and hope to exact revenge after losing at Yankee Stadium on June 13. Montreal will put their excellent home form on the line and hope to extend their unbeaten run at home to five. After picking up a red card against the Union, Patrice Bernier will not be eligible to play against NYCFC.

Game Statistics and Quotes Courtesy of the Montreal Impact:

LINEUPS
MTL - GK-Evan Bush; D-Ambroise Oyongo, Laurent Ciman, Victor Cabrera, Donny Toia; M-Calum Mallace, Patrice Bernier, Dilly Duka (Marco Donadel 69'), Ignacio Piatti, Andrés Romero (Nigel Reo-Coker 86'); F-Dominic Oduro (Jack McInerney 60')

Subs not used: GK-Eric Kronberg; D-Bakary Soumare, Wandrille Lefèvre; M-Maxim Tissot

PHI - GK-Brian Sylvestre; D-Raymon Giddis, Maurice Edu, Richie Marquez, Fabinho; M-Vincent Nogueira, Brian Carroll (Fred 72'), Eric Ayuk, Cristian Maidana (Sheanon Williams 81'), Zach Pfeffer (Andrew Wenger 57'); F-C.J. Sapong

Subs not used: GK-Andre Blake; D-Ethan White; F-Antoine Hoppenot, Dzenan Catic

GOALS
PHI - Ayuk (Sapong, Maidana) 8'
MTL - Piatti (Duka) 28'
MTL - McInerney (Romero) 70'
PHI - Edu 75'

CAUTIONS
MTL - Romero 16'
MTL - Bernier 22'
PHI - Edu 41'
PHI - Ayuk 62'
MTL - Toia 72'

EJECTIONS
MTL - Bernier 67' (second yellow)

PHI - Ayuk 77' (second yellow)