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Analyst, TSN Radio 690 Montreal

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No one in their wildest Impact imaginations could have scripted that with close to an hour on the clock and with a two goal lead, the club which was firmly rooted to the MLS cellar through the entire 2014 season was just over half an hour away from changing Major League Soccer's record of futility on the road against Mexican clubs in the knock out stages of the Champions League.

Then the wheels fell off. As Nahuelpan took full advantage of a defensive mishap to even up the contest and we got an awful reminder of 2009's second leg 'Meltdown in Torreon'. Just as it seemed Pachuca would go on to claim a winning goal in the later stages they failed to stamp their superiority over a team that was struggling for its collective breath. Do remind again Oduro that altitude would not be a factor.

To a person, before kickoff, everyone at the Impact would have taken the 2-2 score line. Now with the first leg part of the record books, I'm not so sure that's the case, when yet again and indicative of the Impact since joining MLS, they failed to close out a contest in which they were seemingly in full control.  

Going into the encounter, the two integral keys to the Impact achieving success were elementary. Take full advantage when opportunities would present themselves and as vital, make best proactive use of the bench.

For all the planning and preparation - it would have been clearly identified early on in the process that the Impact would be at their most exposed in the later stages of the match. Opening your season in the oxygen starved altitude of smoggy Pachuca is bad enough.

It was accepted the Impact would be dominated in possession, chasing the ball for long spells. As the statistics now bear out, I lost count of the corners the Impact conceded, and Pachuca had so much territory they had enough through the 90 minutes to build a decent sized shopping mall.  

Embedded in football folklore is the tenet you are not ever more vulnerable to concede then just after scoring, then throw in 2-1 is the hardest lead to defend in football.

Why it was left until right after Pachuca had levelled it up to make that vital first substitution is a question only the Impact's head coach and his assistants can answer. Did they allow the highly improbable 2-0 lead to distort their proper thinking?

When Hassoun Camara joined the Impact for the 2011 NASL season, mainly playing in a central midfield role, he stood out from his labouring teammates and often made his opponent appear quite pedestrian. Take things in his stride, he certainly did.

The same cannot at all be said of the fullback Camera in Major League Soccer. I mentioned in last week's column of his abject ability and flaws when confronted with an opponent.  It was no shock to see Camara get cautioned yet again. Factoring in he was far from full fitness, surely someone else should have taken his spot on the bench.

If it was no surprise to see Marco Donadel, a player who has played very little competitive football over the last three seasons, not last the full ninety, seeing Callum Mallace come into the game a few minutes after Camara certainly did surprise.  

If a very calm head and tons of canny CONCACAF experience at the international level was needed to see out the final fifteen minutes, then those traits come in abundance in club captain Patrice Bernier. Heard he's not too bad at lofting balls, and delivering key passes into space if it's quick transition into a counter attack opportunity that you're looking for.

Klopas did say when the club announced Bernier would be back in 2015 that managing his playing time would be crucial. As a keen student of the game, Bernier on the bench isn't within itself a bad thing.  His key observations as the match plays out will be an added advantage no matter what situation the 35-year old is called on for.

In a season which includes a Gold Cup in July, and plenty of friendlies in the lead up starting late next month, Bernier will know full well Benito Floro wants and needs him to see regular playing time if he's to be considered for July's Canada squad.

Bernier has been there before, his time in Montreal has hardly been a honeymoon and dust himself off once more he will.  Not sure though how Jack McInerney will be feeling after been passed over late in the game in favour of Cameron Porter.

McInerney will have spent much time in the off season preparing himself mentally for taking over from Di Viao. He's likely still in disbelief that he didn't get the starting XI nod over Oduro. Managing Bernier's playing time will not be the only thing Klopas will have to manage away from the pitch this season.

For all the sets of circumstances Pachuca had in their favour going into the first leg, it was they who are seven games into their season, the altitude, hostility, the prospect of matchday officials making Martin Atkinson's performance at Stamford Bridge last Saturday look like genius, the advantage is most certainly with the Impact heading into the second leg.

For that they can thank Dilly Duka's brace, who surely if he was playing for the Montreal Canadiens, would have been awarded the freedom of the city when the squad returned home Wednesday.  I'm sure the mayor will have tweeted his appreciations, and will be deep amongst the throng come Tuesday night at Olympic Stadium

Although he would rather take that free kick conceded in such a dangerous area plus the mix up with Bush back, Laurent Ciman displayed all the hallmarks and football qualities of why he will likely figure highly in All-Star balloting this season.

The Impact though have got to be very clever with how they manage a player who went from Brazil 2014 to the start of the Belgian season in less time than it takes for Arsene Wenger's season to completely fall apart.

As disappointing as Piatti's performance may have been, let's not lose sight of when exactly it was he last put an Impact shirt on. Piatti's sluggishness more than made up for by normal service resuming for Justin Mapp. When was the last time you saw such a left foot put his best right foot forward to such effect ahead of the Impact's second goal.

It might psychologically have felt like a defeat come the final whistle in Pachuca, but there is more than enough time to ensure any lingering disappointments felt for letting the winning position fall from their grasp are completely removed from thought patterns. Full and proper mental preparation ahead of the home leg on March 3rd for the Impact is key.

As the squad and coaching staff enjoy a relaxing Friday evening, Pachuca will be taking to the pitch in Tijuana in a crucial league fixture against the current Liga MX leaders. Following, a 4,000 kilometre journey awaits, let alone a body numbing drop in temperatures. You'd almost wish Stade Saputo was open for business.

Nothing helps business off the pitch better than the on the field product and certainly the Montreal public has voted with their wallets since Tuesday night. The club announcing yesterday that over 3,000 additional tickets had been sold and in doing so they have pushed through the 20,000 mark.

As Impact supporters were getting out their flexible friend Wednesday, they did so exactly six-years to the day since that Santos Laguna evening at Olympic Stadium in 2009. Eddie Sebrango's brace will always be that stand out moment, but something else happened on the day of the game.  An extraordinary volume of tickets were sold throughout the day and a substantial walk up crowd ensured that not only did the crowd nudge past the 50,000 mark it finally settled at well over 55,000.  

It's a results driven business and you have to tip your hat to the Impact for what could well turn out to be, come late Tuesday night, the most valuable draw in club history - made all the more special by the sizeable contingent of Impact supporters who set aside all else to be in Pachuca.  

Noel.Butler@BellMedia.ca
@TheSoccerNoel

Montreal Impact Vs Pachuca Live on TSN 690 – Tuesday, March 3rd Kick Off 8:00pm et / 11:00pm pt