CF Montreal head into the Fourth of July holiday with an opportunity to match their longest winning streak of the Major League Soccer campaign when they battle the Los Angeles Galaxy at Dignity Health Sports Park on Monday.
Montreal are third in the Eastern Conference, following a 2-1 win versus the Seattle Sounders in midweek, but with two games in hand on the top-seeded New York Red Bulls, while LA have dropped into seventh-place out West after a 3-2 defeat versus Minnesota United.
Match preview
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A campaign which began with so much promise in Los Angeles has sputtered, with the Galaxy now winless in three consecutive home contests and a mere two points above the playoff line.
It seems like they have suffered from a bout of complacency in recent outings, taking their recent opponents a little too lightly.
The Galaxy have only gained one point in their last two domestic fixtures against non-playoff teams (Minnesota and the Portland Timbers), while also being stunned 2-1 in the quarter-finals of the U.S. Open Cup against Sacramento Republic.
Through their opening 10 games of the regular season, it seemed as though Greg Vanney had found a solution to this team's defensive woes, as his side allowed a goal or fewer in nine of those contests. Lately, they have been anything but sound on the back end, conceding 11 times in their last five MLS home fixtures.
Playing catch-up is something LA have had to do their share of recently, allowing the opening goal in five of their previous six matches in all competitions.
Through most of the 2022 campaign to date, the Galaxy have provided much better service to their strikers, with 10 different players tallying at least one assist so far this season.
If you were to sum up their MLS campaign of late in a couple of words, too little or too late might come to mind, as all but one of their domestic tallies since May 14 have come after an hour of play, trailing 3-0 in two of those encounters before finding a breakthrough.
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A pair of statement victories for Montreal have temporarily silenced those critics who believe that this team will only go as far as Djordje Mihailovic can take them.
Their top goalscorer and leading candidate for MLS MVP has not featured since the end of May, but lately his presence has not been needed, with this team claiming back-to-back victories without the star midfielder.
Manager Wilfried Nancy has to be near the top of the list for MLS Coach of the Year, and he has put together a strong identity for this group that look poised to make the playoffs for only the second time in the past six years.
A team with a solid backline, who are well-drilled, have shown us their offensive capabilities throughout the regular season, scoring the most goals in the Eastern Conference (32).
We have witnessed two different sides to this team in the early stages of their MLS encounters, the first one being a squad who are fast out of the gate, scoring eight times beyond the half-hour mark, while the other is a unit lacking focus early on, conceding seven goals before a match is 15 minutes old.
Perhaps the most significant cause for concern at the moment is the number of times they have had to fight their way back from a deficit, conceding first on 10 occasions.
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Team News
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Los Angeles super-sub Dejan Joveljic has turned into a saviour of sorts for this club, tallying all five of his goals domestically in the second half, two of which were match-winners.
He trails Chicharito for the team lead in goals, with the Mexican striker scoring six times domestically, while Samuel Grandsir and Raheem Edwards are tied for first in assists, having each contributed three so far in 2022.
The Galaxy are still missing Jorge Villafana because of a left knee strain, Chase Gasper has an upper thigh injury, while Douglas Costa and Kevin Cabral will both sit out of this encounter after each collecting a red card on Wednesday.
A brace from Mason Toye helped Montreal erase an early Sounders goal from Jordan Morris, while Kei Kamara celebrated his 375th career MLS appearance by collecting two assists in that match, moving past Alistair Johnston and into first on the team (five).
Kamara is only the ninth player in league history to reach that milestone for caps, and his teammate Sebastian Breza still has a long way to go to catch him, though the Canadian keeper on loan from Bologna played in his 25th career MLS match earlier this week.
Mihailovic remains sidelined with an ankle issue, Bjorn Johnsen has a problem with his foot and Tomas Giraldo continues to nurse a hamstring injury.
Los Angeles Galaxy possible starting lineup:
Bond; Araujo, DePuy, Coulibaly, Edwards; Aguirre, Delgado; Alvarez, Raveloson, Grandsir; Chicharito
CF Montreal possible starting lineup:
Breza; Waterman, Camacho, Miller; Lappalainen, Piette, Kone, Johnston; Miljevic; Toye, Kamara
We say: Los Angeles Galaxy 2-1 CF Montreal
It may be the warm climate of California or some psychological issue, but Montreal have struggled with the playing surfaces and conditions in the City of Angeles, failing to beat either LA squad away from home.
Their leaky defence still needs work, but we anticipate that the Galaxy's attacking quality will make up for those shortcomings on Monday.
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