August 28, 2015 Toronto FC II--preview of Toronto FC vs Charlotte Independence (from torontofc.ca)
Independence Travels To Canada With Two Matches In Four Days Jillian Fay Blog, News Article MONTREAL, QC (Aug. 25, 2015) — With a 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Riverhounds on Saturday night, the Charlotte Independence extended its unbeaten streak to seven matches and moved within three points of a playoff spot. The club now enters one of the more challenging stretches in its schedule, playing six games in 18 days. Four of the six are road contests, where Charlotte is 0-4-5 on the season. The Independence’s first opponent, FC Montreal, has quietly put together a five-match unbeaten streak of its own. In fact, the club has only suffered one loss in its last nine contests — a 2-0 defeat by the Independence on July 24. Charlotte controlled the game from kickoff, forcing Montreal keeper David Paulmin to make 12 saves on the night, while receiving goals from Daniel Jackson (30’) and Alex Martinez (86’). Although the club is coming off a scoreless draw in Wilmington, Montreal recorded nine goals in its previous three matches. Jacques Haman accounted for three of the tallies, while Fabio Morelli and leading scorer Alessandro Riggi added two each. In addition, Paulmin has only allowed two goals total since giving up two in the match against Charlotte. Following Wednesday’s rematch with Montreal — a 6:30pm ET kickoff — the Independence will travel southwest to face Toronto FC II in a Sunday matinee. It will mark the first meeting between the two clubs this season. Toronto is 5-14-3, with nine losses in its last 12 matches. The bright spot for Toronto this season has been Molham Babouli. The forward has contributed four of the club’s 16 goals, while assisting on another three. As for the Independence, Enzo Martinez (3g, 6a), Carlos Alvarez (2g, 4a) and Jackson (4g) have all become major contributors for the club over the past few weeks. The offense also will be aided by the return of Dominique Badji (2g), who missed Saturday’s match due to a red card suspension. In contrast, Charlotte will be without leading goal scorer Ryan Finley (5g, 1a), who was shown a red card of his own against Pittsburgh. While Finley is suspended for Wednesday’s match, it is possible he could rejoin the club in Toronto on Sunday. Meanwhile, often overlooked is Charlotte’s stingy back line. The quartet of Bilal Duckett, Mechack Jérôme, Patrick Slogic and Henry Kalungi is allowing opponents an average of less than 10 shots per game. Their play has greatly contributed to the solid return of keeper John Berner, who was sidelined three months with a fractured cheekbone. He has allowed just two goals in his first two starts since injury. In order to keep its push for the playoffs alive, it is imperative that the Independence starts getting the same kind of results on the road as it has at home. The first test will come Wednesday, Aug. 26, at 6:30pm against FC Montreal, followed by the first tilt between Charlotte and Toronto FC II on Sunday, Aug. 30, at 3:00pm. Both matches will be available live on YouTube.
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