jonovision

I wasn't even thinking of Miller, but of Camacho.

This ridiculous Brian White hot streak must be infuriating to Marc dos Santos.

Montreal has a goalkeeping issue no matter who plays. The rest of the squad is solid, if unspectacular. The lineup fielded this evening by Nancy was neither solid nor spectacular.

My fear about Forge's success is that the other teams do not have even the meager resources of a top CPL side. I know Valour vastly underspends the cap, but Forge have 7 or 8 guys that would be at least the second best player on half the teams in the league. They added top CONCACAF veterans, Welshman and Browne, at mid-season. This is at least eyebrow raising, seeing the bottom of the barrel the other teams are scraping for players. It's great for Forge fans, but it's bad for the league if it's a one-team show. I made two posts in this thread other than my knocks at Forge, both lamenting Montreal did not particularly take this tie seriously. Neither their best keeper, defender (2 best actually), midfielder, or forward were in the 18. They played a 17 year old who had no business being out there. And fair play to them, they have bigger priorities with a playoff race in the league.

Forge may go toe to toe occasionally against teams from a bigger league. But they are not like the other teams. Almost every big moment, big decision, etc., since the league opened has gone their way. They have what is, at the very least, a curious talent and recruiting advantage over two-thirds of the league. They are the only team that has had the opportunity to play in big matches. They have the smartest manager in football (just ask him). They are a good side and I'm tired of watching them. Happy to see Montreal advance, despite their not taking the tie seriously (see: their XI). There is no trickle-down. Success for Forge doesn't mean squat for Edmonton, Valour, Ottawa, etc.

That's because they didn't field an MLS lineup.

Looks like a Forge A team vs a Montreal B team. Tabla back on the bench. Forge likely won't have an easier path to the final any time soon.

I'm kind of surprised Valour haven't dropped into FCE territory, attendance-wise. Over three years, they've had 7 non-bubble home wins. Eddies also have 7 over the same period, with two home matches remaining. On the bright side, the season seat holders in Winnipeg will have ended 2021 watching two 3-goal home wins.

Who is this team, and what have they done with my Valour FC?

Alphonso had 3 or 4 consecutive excellent set piece deliveries in that sequence. This stood out to me because most of our set piece deliveries in the previous matches had been so poor.

Pantemis should have had the stop but also did a terrible job organizing the wall. Didn't cover anything. What a gift.

TFC getting some Fergie time there. Huge blow to Montreal.

The difference between Laryea and Osorio playing for Canada and the same two playing for TFC are stark.

^ The tickets for Panama might have been a bit pricey, but there was still a big pro-Canada crowd at BMO for the match, not to mention how short a window there was to sell additional tickets after COVID restrictions were loosened. Toronto showed up. For match in a smaller city without a built-in soccer fanbase, with the prospect of miserable weather, cheap is the way to go. Good on the tall foreheads at the CSA for realizing it. I'd expect ticket prices in Vancouver in January to fall somewhere in between these two ranges.

Yes, but he was better and more vital to whatever success 2020 Valour had than Sirois in 2021. Matt Silva has been selected several times to start ahead of Sirois, and often not without merit.