CF Montréal advance to the Semi-Finals after a 2:1 away win over Toronto FC

CF Montréal have advanced to the Semi-Finals of the 2023 Canadian Championship after an away 2:1 win over Toronto FC. All three goals were scored in the first half, with Zachary Brault-Guillard and Nnamdi Offor the goalscorers for CF Montréal before Lorenzo Insigne got one back for the home side.

CF Montréal will meet Forge FC Hamilton in the 2023 Semi-Finals in late May. It marks the third year in a row that the two sides will meet in the Canadian Championship, also the second time that they will meet in the Semi-Finals. CF Montréal previously eliminated Forge FC in the 2021 Semi-Finals and 2022 Quarter-Finals.

With the Tuesday win in Toronto, CF Montréal have won five matches in a row in all competitions dating back to the Canadian Championship Preliminary Round on 18 April. They have scored two goals in each of those five wins, albeit the Insigne goal was the first that they conceded since 15 April against D.C. United.

Montréal scored the opening goal on a counter attack after they blocked a Federico Bernardeschi free kick and caused a turnover in their own end. On the play, Rudy Camacho won the interception, Romell Quioto played it to Sean Rea who in turn played it way down the pitch for Quioto’s run towards the box, but Quioto was stopped by goalkeeper Sean Johnson. Toronto failed to clear the rebound and Brault-Guillard pounced on the loose ball for the 1-0 shot.

Four minutes after the Brault-Guillard opener, Offor scored the winner in the 39th minute on a header from a Mathieu Choinière cross. Another four minutes later, Insigne scored his goal after Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty won an interception and then fed Laryea into the box who in turn centered it for Insigne.