Who's better the MLS or USL?

[Frank Cunha]

if the Open Cup, and Concacaf is a barometer
USL consider the II division, wins hands down

great job by the USL teams


TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras -- Roberto Brown scored twice, including a penalty in the 73rd minute, to give the Montreal Impact a 2:1 win at CD Olimpia on Wednesday and remain unbeaten in the CONCACAF Champions League™.

With the win, the Canadian champion extended its unbeaten streak in the tournament to five matches, allowing one goal.

Elvis Turcios accounted for the lone strike by Olimpia, which lost its second in three games and remained in third place I Group C.

The Impact climbed alone atop the group with seven points, pending the outcome of Atlante’s home match Thursday against Joe Public in Cancun, Mexico.

"It was a great victory for us - we didn't plan it that way," Brown said. "A lot of people didn't expect it from us but we knew we had a great team and we live like a family and we knew we can go anywhere and get three points. We recognize what we can do to get the three points, and that’s what we did tonight. Brown converted his winning penalty despite Olimpia goalkeeper Noel Valladares diving to his left and getting a hand to the ball, as its momentum carried it over the line.

The Impact continued the surprising run of teams from the United Soccer Leagues – essentially the second division of North American soccer, having held Mexican giant Atlante to a 0:0 draw and beating Joe Public 2:0.

Montreal’s win came in its first away match of the Group Stage and despite the club’s tortuous schedule of late.

Wednesday’s match was the fourth game of five games in 10 days for the Impact. The crowded schedule also has included cross-continent travel from Montreal to Seattle and back, and then to Central America in less than a week.

Brown gave the Impact the lead when he scored just three minutes into the match. The Panamanian got behind the Olimpia defense to head in a corner from Joey Gjertsen for his first goal of the tournament.

The goal took some of the momentum out of Olimpia, which looked to feed off the boisterous pro-Olimpia crowd at Tegucigalpa’s Estadio Tiburcio Carias Andino.

But Olimpia equalized in the 34th minute when Turcios tied the match following some sustained pressure.

Turcios, after a fake start, spun a free kick from 28 yards out over the Impact wall and by Impact goalkeeper Matt Jordan.

The goal was the first the Impact has allowed in five tournament matches and snapped Jordan’s shutout streak at 394 minutes.

Olimpia coach Juan Castillo tried to inject some offence by inserting Wilmer Velasquez, the club’s all-time leading scorer, to start the second half.

Any chance of a comeback was dashed when Bonilla sent off Turcios with a red card in the 87th minute.

The game then degenerated with Olimpia’s Oscar Garcia receiving a straight red in the 90th minute for an elbow to the head of Impact midfielder Leonardo Di Lorenzo.

Montreal next heads to Macoya, Trinidad, to take on Joe Public on 8 October, while Olimpia stays home to host Atlante that same night.

IMPACT 2 CD OLIMPIA 1

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras - Un doublé de l'attaquant Roberto Brown a permis à l'Impact de Montréal de vaincre le CD Olimpia 2-1 mercredi, lors de son troisième match dans la phase des groupes de la Ligue des Champions de la CONCACAF, devant 7224 spectateurs bruyants au Stade Tiburcio Carias Andino (Estadio National) à Tegucigalpa, au Honduras.

Après avoir été accroché dans la surface de réparation, l'attaquant Roberto Brown a lui-même pris le tir de pénalité et a marqué le but vainqueur à la 72e minute. Sur le jeu, le gardien Noel Valladares a plongé du côté gauche, a touché de la main droite le ballon, mais n'a pas été en mesure de bloquer le tir de Brown.

Brown avait ouvert le pointage dès la deuxième minute en déviant de la tête le coup de pied de coin du milieu de terrain Joey Gjertsen. Brown a sauté à la ligne des six mètres, battant en hauteur le gardien de CD Olimpia Noel Valladares.

Le CD Olimpia a marqué son seul but du match à la 33e minute. Le milieu de terrain Elvis Danilo Turcios a tiré avec précision un coup franc dans l'axe, tout juste à l'extérieur de la surface de réparation, battant le gardien de l'Impact Matt Jordan dans la partie supérieure à sa droite. Il s'agissait du premier but encaissé par l'Impact et Jordan en cinq matchs de la Ligue des Champions.

"C'est incroyable un résultat comme celui de ce soir, après avoir joué autant au cours des dernières semaines," a déclaré l'entraîneur-chef de l'Impact John Limniatis. On s'attendait à un match difficile, mais quand tu travailles fort et que tu y croies, tu peux réaliser de belles choses. Nous avons été efficaces ce soir tant défensivement qu'offensivement."

"C'est tout un résultat!," s'est exclamé le vétéran défenseur Nevio Pizzolitto. "Nous avons fait ce que nous devions faire ce soir, soit récolter trois points. Personne ne croyait que nous pouvions le faire. C'est incroyable ! Nous sommes restés concentrés pendant 90 minutes. Ils ont eu quelques chances de marquer, mais rien pour battre Matt (Jordan)."

L'Impact a terminé le match avec l'avantage d'un joueur, alors que le milieu de terrain du CD Olimpia Elvis Danilo Turcios a été expulsé en toute fin de deuxième demie pour avoir taclé illégalement Leonardo Di Lorenzo.

Après trois matchs dans la Ligue des Champions de la CONCACAF, l'Impact demeure au premier rang du Groupe C. Le club mexicain Atlante FC affrontait aussi ce soir Joe Public FC.

Le milieu de terrain Sandro Grande et l'attaquant Peter Byers ont raté le match en raison d'une suspension d'un match pour avoir écopé de deux cartons jaunes. Le milieu de terrain Félix Brillant, qui soigne un virus, est aussi demeuré à Montréal.

Le onze montréalais disputera son prochain match dans la Ligue des Champions de la CONCACAF le mercredi 8 octobre contre Joe Public, au Stade Marvin Lee, à Trinité-et-Tobago.

Entre-temps, l'Impact disputera sa série demi-finale de la Première division de la USL contre les Whitecaps de Vancouver. Le premier match aura lieu vendredi au Stade Saputo puis le match retour sera joué dimanche, au Stade Swangard, à Vancouver.

[Frank Cunha]

its not only the MLS Teams, the Mexican teams are also getting their ass's kick
CANCUN, Mexico – Roen Nelson scored his second goal of the CONCACAF Champions League™ in the 57th minute and Joe Public FC stunned Mexico’s Atlante FC 1:0 Thursday to restore its hopes in the continental competition.

The victory gave Joe Public three points and moved it into a tie for third with CD Olimpia in Group C as the phase of the competition reached its midpoint. Montreal leads the group with seven points, three more than Atlante, which last week was held to a 0:0 draw by the Impact.

Joe Public, coming off a penalty kick loss to W Connection in the Trinidad & Tobago First Citizen’s Cup final six days earlier, appeared content to absorb pressure and counterattack, largely limiting the Mexican side to chances from distance.

Nelson, who last scored in a 4:0 victory over the New England Revolution in the Preliminary Round, converted on one of Joe Public’s few chances. A free kick was headed into the path of Nelson, who escaped his marker, Giancarlos Maldonado, and found himself alone on the left side of the penalty area.

Nelson calmly struck a right-footed volley from 12 yards that left goalkeeper Frederico Vilar with no chance.

The loss snapped a five-game unbeaten streak for Atlante and eight without a loss at home.

The goal seemed to spark Atlante, resulting in several good chances, most notably by Maldonado.

He shot high in the 59th while unmarked at the right post and then forced Joe Public goalkeeper Alejandro Figueroa into a reaction save in the 62nd.

Both teams finished the game with 10 men when Jose Carevic of Atlante was ejected for a foul in the third minute of injury time and Joe Public's Gregory Richardson followed with a red card for dissent.

Joe Public will play its next two games at home, on Wednesday against Montreal and on 21 October against Atlante.

Two of Atlante’s remaining three games are away from home, starting next week when it travels to Honduras on Wednesday to face Olimpia and followed by the return leg against Joe Public.