MLS Philadelphia Union

Philadelphia Union Fall to Montreal Impact at Stade Saputo

Published on May 25, 2013 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Philadelphia Union News Release


Montreal - Philadelphia Union (5-5-3) fell to the Montreal Impact (7-2-2), 5-3 Saturday night at Stade Saputo as goals from Jack McInerney, Antoine Hoppenot and Sebastien Le Toux weren't enough to complete a comeback performance against their Eastern Conference counterpart.

"We tried to come back and get ourselves in the game and we certainly did that," said Union manager John Hackworth. "Then [the match] turns and the momentum should go in our favor and we really mismanaged parts of the game."

Goals from DiVaio in the second, 28th and 32nd minute, coupled with tallies from Andrew Wenger (74th) and a clincher in stoppage time from Blake Smith provided the Impact with enough in an eight-goal perfomance between the two sides.

A comeback looked very likely after second-half substitute Hoppenot scored in the 69th and a blistering left footed shot from Le Toux, brought the Union within one goal in the 85th minute.

This one was a fast paced, physical match played in a steady downpour. The Union was efficient in their chances on goal, as just four chances on frame and netted three goals. Additionally, though there were gaps in the Union defense on a few occasions, the offensive outburst showed promise going forward into a long season, specifically to McInerney, who pointed that out as a bright spot after the match.

"It's good for our confidence; losing certainly isn't, but being able to put chances in the back of the net is good because you need goals to win games," said McInerney. "Getting goals on the road is a good sign, but when we give up so many chances in the back like we did tonight we are not going to get the results. So now it's about going back to work and locking that down."

Hoppenot, who scored his first of the season on a long ball into the box that found the far post of Montreal goalkeeper Troy Perkins, echoed McInerney's sentiments.

"Two times we came back from two goals down and I think that shows a lot of resolve and that our team is always ready to fight," said Hoppenot. "At the end of the day, we didn't get the three points, but I think this shows that if we are goals down we can fight back and I am confident that will find us getting points and that it'll only help us towards the end of the year."

The Union fly back to Pennsylvania Sunday afternoon and will have to prepare for first round U.S. Open Cup play against the Ocean City Nor'Easters of USL PDL on Tuesday at PPL Park (7:30 p.m.). After that, the team returns to Canada on Saturday for an Eastern Conference clash against Toronto (6 p.m. ET, The Comcast Network).

"You can't let this one linger for too long. We still have a lot of games left," said McInerney. "Obviously, we have a game on Tuesday and a big game next Saturday on the road, so it's time to regroup - and I think we'll be okay. We'll recover."

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