The Crew finds itself needing a win in MLS play and they need it sooner rather than later. While it certainly isn’t time to panic, the Black & Gold need to kick it into gear after their Hell is Real Derby loss last Saturday. The Crew hasn’t won in MLS play since March 16th and needs to keep up with the rest of the Eastern Conference to stay within touching distance of the leaders at the top of the table. The good news for the Black & Gold and their supporters is that they have a quick turnaround with a midweek trip north of the border to Montreal, Quebec, Canada for a date with CF Montreal.

Montreal, who the Crew drew 0-0 with just two and a half weeks ago, has lost two of their last three in all competitions. With both sides needing a win, this midweek match will have more bite to it than your usual Wednesday night match in mid-May. The Crew looks to take lessons from the previous meeting between these two sides and regain their footing in league play. Below are some things to know about Montreal and how Columbus can bounce back from their derby defeat.

CF Montreal at a Glance:

Record: 3-3-5, 12 points

League Form: L,L,D,W,L

Leading Scorer: Matias Cocarro (3)

Assist Leader: Josef Martinez (3)

Player to Watch: Ariel Lassiter 

Montreal’s leading goal scorer Matias Cocarro and assist leader Josef Martinez will both miss this match on Wednesday. Thus, the onus for an attacking threat will shift to Lassiter. Lassiter, son of MLS legend Roy Lassiter has bounced around in MLS before landing in Montreal last year after a trade that saw him leave Inter Miami. Lassiter’s skill set is a good fit in Laurent Courtois’ system and has helped Lassiter contribute two goals and two assists thus far in 2024. Lassiter has elite speed and dribbling ability that makes him a tough mark for most MLS defenders. Lassiter operates either as a left wing-back or higher up the field as a left-sided attacker for Courtois. Lassiter loves to push into the attack and use his speed to run in behind to receive the ball or run at opposing defenses. He will need to be watched closely by the Black & Gold on Saturday as he looks to exploit space behind the Crew’s backline in transition. 

How CF Montreal play: 

Wilfried Nancy and Crew supporters are very familiar with the way that former Crew 2 boss Laurent Courtois will set his side up on Wednesday. In addition to previous knowledge from Courtois’ time in Columbus, Nancy and the Crew have the added benefit of having just played Montreal a few matches ago. Like Nancy, Courtois rarely changes how his sides are set up, so we have a good idea of what to expect from the opponents on Wednesday night. 

In possession, Courtois sets his side up in an almost identical shape to  Columbus. Operating out of a 3-4-3 base formation, the Montreal wingbacks will push high up the field, occupying the opponent’s backline as much as possible. Montreal will also use their back three to instigate attacks and play passes into their central midfielders. Most times, Montreal will have four players in central areas, with two midfielders slightly closer to the backline to help circulate the ball and keep possession and two players closer to the frontline looking to receive the ball and kickstart the Montreal attack. The main difference between Montreal and Columbus is that Montreal is much more willing to play long, direct balls out of pressure than Columbus. Additionally, Montreal seemed to have an added emphasis on playing forward passes as much as possible against Columbus in their previous matchup. These passes can cause problems for Montreal’s opponents as forward passes often take defenders out of play and put stress on the backline. Look for Montreal to do more of this on Wednesday night as they look to counterattack the Crew. 

Defensively, Montreal is once again incredibly similar to Columbus. Montreal’s base shape when defending is a 5-2-3, just like Columbus. However, in the previous matchup, this shifted to a 5-4-1 when the Crew had the ball for extended periods of time. Montreal will use their front three to apply pressure high up the field whenever possible. Last match, these front three were almost man-to-man in their pressing against the Crew’s three-man backline. The two central midfielders are responsible for closing down the Crew’s central midfielders and screening the passing lanes to the Crew’s front line. Montreal will use their wingbacks to defend the Crew’s wingbacks, making the battles in the wide areas almost exclusively 1v1. Lastly, the Montreal center backs did not hesitate to step out of the backline and into the midfield to apply pressure in the last match. When done correctly, this defensive structure is very man-oriented thanks to the similar shape/formation of each side. 

How the Crew can win:

The Crew needs a win and quick. Playing on the road against an injury-riddled Montreal side, who they have already played, represents a good chance to get three road points for Columbus. Based off their previous matchup, there are three key areas for the Crew to excel in order to get back to winning ways. 

1. Exploit 1v1 Matchups: Thanks to the identical formations and tactical familiarity between these two sides, there are going to be a ton of 1v1 matchups Wednesday. As we discussed, the Montreal defensive set up is going to have a huge emphasis on winning these 1v1 battles and making combinations tough on the Crew. The Crew needs to win these matchups and play quickly in between Montreal’s defensive lines in order to threaten the goal. 
2. Switch the Point of Attack: The Crew can hurt Montreal if they switch the point of attack often on Wednesday. Specifically, they need to do this after they progress the ball past the Montreal midfield. When the Crew have the ball in front of the backline, the Montreal defenders will step to the ball to halt its progress. If the Crew can quickly switch the point of attack in these moments it will allow them to attack the space vacated by these defenders stepping to put pressure on the ball. 
3. Dominate Possession: Despite the 0-0 scoreline, the Crew were unlucky not to win the previous matchup between these two sides. A large part of that was thanks to the Crew’s dominance of the ball. Montreal wants to have the ball just as much as Columbus does. If the Crew can dominate the ball it will make Montreal uncomfortable defending for long periods, which could lead to defensive mistakes for the Crew to exploit.