Forward Gustavo Bou scored the game’s only goal in the 56th minute and goalkeeper Matt Turner tipped away the potential equalizer deep in second-half stoppage time to push the New England Revolution past Montreal Impact, 1-0, in the opening match of Group C play at the MLS is Back Tournament in Orlando, Florida.
It is the first win of the season for the Revolution, which opened the season with a 2-1 road loss to Montreal back in February, and tied the Chicago Fire at home, 1-1, before the season was stopped due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
New England had a 19-7 edge in shots and a bevy of scoring chances, especially in the first half, through Bou and playmaker Carles Gil.
Montreal coach Thierry Henry did create a subtle but powerful moment kneeling in the coach’s box for the first 8:46 of the game in solidarity with Black Lives Matter. Coaching staffs from both teams wore Black Live Matter shirts during the match.
Man of the Match
Gustavo Bou: For the first 55 minutes of the match, Bou was inventing ways to not score from a steady stream of chances created for him, including a chip shot in the closing moments of the first half made possible by Scott Caldwell’s defender-splitting long ball. Bou would not be denied, however, as he gathered a pass from Carles Gil near the top of the penalty area, ditched a defender and ripped a left-footed rocket home for the match’s only goal.
Moment of the Match
Stoppage-time save: Revs goalkeeper Matt Turner denied Ballou Tabla’s long-range effort six minutes into second-half stoppage time with a diving, finger-tip save to his left to preserve the win.
Match to Forget
Bojan Krkić. Bojan had very little influence during his 57 minutes, recording just one off-target shot.