Jado’s Virtuosos: Offside? Never Heard of It

It might be easy to think the Montreal Impact are just bad, especially if we were to base ourselves on a 4-minute-long game highlights video. But if you sit down and watch the entire game, that cannot be your conclusion. Defending Camacho, Vargas and Silva is content for another article, but it’s important to realize that the team did not play bad against Dallas, on Saturday.

For instance, both goals for Dallas should not have happened, and this time they were not even caused by an Impact player’s mistake. The first goal saw Camacho clear the ball off a free-kick right into Mancosu’s face, where it proceeded to deflect into the back of the net. Mancosu own goal. Now, how anyone blames Camacho for this, I cannot understand. In any case, two (if not more) of Dallas’ players were offside, one of which jumped in an attempt to head the ball. Even if he did not touch the ball, that’s an offside 11 times out of 10. The ref even called it right, but the VAR ref heavily suggested that he overrules it. Mistake number 1.

Then, a few minutes later, Camacho gets stepped on as he attempts to clear the ball out of his box. Urruti, the player who stepped on him, proceeds to fall on the floor and roll as if his foot had been hammered by the almighty Thor himself. Ref calls a penalty. But here’s the best part. No sign of video review. Why? Only God knows, especially as the close-up replays clearly show that there is no penalty. Mistake number 2, and the Impact were down two to nil.

The rest of the game, as many have noted before me, allowed everyone to see where the team is lacking. And no, they are not just bad. They are lacking a dangerous striker, a real offensive #10 and proper full-backs. 2 successful crosses out of 21 would be a much different statistic with those players on the team. Other than that, the Montreal Impact are starting to play better football, playing well in possession and solid in defense. This time, they just got beat by the refereeing.

Anyhow, here are this weekend’s Three Virtuosos:

Virtuoso #1: Evan Bush

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The American keeper had a great game, making big saves to keep his team in the game. He only let in an own goal which was impossible for him to guess and save, and a very well taken penalty shot. The Bleu Blanc Noir really did not do a good job defending corners, and Bush came up big three times to save open headers. He’s been consistently solid all season long, and last game was no exception.

Virtuoso #2: Rod Fanni

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Fanni, who’s contract expires at the end of the month, has been head and shoulders above any other defender on the roster. He played another good game defensively, and his partnership with Camacho in the back showed some promise, as both were very good with the ball at their feet. Extending the Frenchman’s contract until the end of the season would probably be the best move.

Virtuoso #3: Saphir Taïder

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The Algerian midfielder has been getting a lot of heat because he has not lived up to the expectations that come with a Designated Player tag. Although that is somewhat true, he’s been playing much better recently and had a good game overall this Saturday. However, it’s likely that we will only see the best of him if we get a quality offensive midfielder to play in front of him.

Next up, Orlando City.

All statistics courtesy of SofaScore.

Who do you think were the top performers? Leave your comments below, and as always, Allez Montréal!