Achi news desk-
Montreal CF will have to put their depth to the test this weekend.
Forwards Matias Kokaro, Joseph Martinez, Kwudo Opoko and Jules-Anthony Wilson are all out as Montreal (3-3-1) hosts Orlando City SC in a Major League Soccer match on Saturday night.
“Obviously we are sad about the injuries,” wing Raheem Edwards said today (Friday). “But I think this team is really, really deep. So it’s the mentality of the next man up.”
Coccaro – the team’s leading scorer with three this season – will miss eight to 10 weeks with an undisclosed injury sustained in last Saturday’s 2-1 win over FC Cincinnati. The off-season signing came off in the 26th minute after appearing to hurt his right leg earlier in the game.
Martinez, who had a goal and an assist after replacing Coccaro in the game, then limped out of practice on Wednesday. Head coach Laurent Courtois said his injury is less serious, but the team is being cautious with the 30-year-old veteran.
“He told me he was ready to come back, I said relax a bit,” Courtois said. “We want to remain cautious. We suffered a blow, but Yosef is already feeling much better, he is already talking about when he will come. I would like us to remain cautious, not to panic.”
Courtois said Ofoko (ankle) is nearing a return from his March 2 injury against Dallas.
Wilson, meanwhile, has recovered from a knee injury that has sidelined him since March 10, but was not fit to participate on Saturday, Courtois said.
The next players, as Edwards put it, are Sonusi Ibrahim and Mason Toye, who have combined to play 117 minutes and seven games this season. Ibrahim has one goal.
Despite the changes required in his starting line-up, Courtois said his game plan will not change against Orlando (2-3-2) – and he feels comfortable with his options.
“I’m lucky to have a roster with a lot to offer and people who have already shown me things and others who can show me a little more,” Courtois said. “It’s up to me to help them so that we speak the same language and maintain the same performance as last week.”
Edwards, a well-traveled 10-season MLS veteran who has played for six different teams, believes finding depth is the key to success in the league.
“What makes a good team in MLS is your depth. I’ve been part of some really good teams and that was the main thing,” he said. “There are guys who can step up and do a good job. So in the striker position he is the next man and I have full faith in our strikers.”
Montreal visited Orlando to open the season on February 24, and surprised the home team by holding them to a 0-0 draw.
Orlando, which finished second in the Eastern Conference last season, then lost three straight to a disastrous start, but has since turned it around by winning seven of its last nine points.
“This is a team that impresses me,” Courtois said. “But I also know that we can do our best and not be afraid of anyone. From our end, I expect the same performance as last week, but there is a very good team coming against us and they want a little revenge for the last game.
“We have no excuse, we are aware that they will go very hard against us.”
— This report by The Canadian Press was first published on April 19, 2024.
