Sunusi Ibrahim's late goal leads CF Montreal to draw with Philadelphia Union
TFC officially eliminated from MLS playoff contention in 2-0 loss to Atlanta United
Sunusi Ibrahim's leaping header in the final minute kept CF Montreal's playoff hopes alive in a 2-2 draw with the visiting Philadelphia Union on Saturday.
Mustafa Kizza's cross found the substitute's head after Montreal spent the last 15 minutes of the match desperately pressing for the equalizer to keep them in the MLS playoff picture.
"I'm not surprised by this equalizer," Montreal head coach Wilfried Nancy said. "My teams have always been resilient. It's something I demand from everybody until the final minute."
Matko Miljevic was Montreal's other goalscorer.
Kai Wagner scored for Philadelphia with Union's other strike an own-goal from Montreal goalkeeper James Pantemis.
WATCH | CF Montreal pick up important point in draw against Philadelphia:
Montreal gained a precious point in the Eastern Conference to move one point back of fourth-place Orlando and five back of Philadelphia ranked third, but let a chance at three points slip away Saturday.
"It feels like losing two points more so than earning one after the way we played," Montreal captain Samuel Piette said.
The top seven clubs in each conference advance to playoffs.
Montreal stormed out of the gate Saturday, enjoyed long stretches of possession and kept the ball deep in Philadelphia's third of the field.
Both teams have matches Wednesday when Montreal travels to Exploria Stadium to face Orlando City SC. Philadelphia takes on Minnesota United on the road.
TFC officially eliminated from MLS playoff contention
Toronto FC was officially eliminated from MLS playoff contention in an ill-tempered 2-0 loss to Atlanta United on Saturday night.
Brazilian forward Luiz Araujo delivered the coup de grace with a goal in first-half-stoppage time to give Atlanta its first victory at BMO Field in five visits (1-3-1). Marcelino Moreno added an insurance goal in the 97th minute, dancing around defender Kemar Lawrence before poking a shot past Alex Bono.
WATCH | Araújo's gorgeous chip goal stuns Toronto FC's playoff hopes:
There was bad blood in the dying minutes with Toronto's Brazilian fullback Auro and Atlanta's Ezequiel Barco both sent off in the 84th minute for violent conduct after coming together. Auro seemed to accuse the Argentine of diving and it went downhill from there, with the two players jawing at each other forehead-to-forehead.
The delays led to nine minutes of extra time with Brad Guzan making a remarkable reflex save off a Omar Gonzalez header to preserve the Atlanta victory.
Toronto's Alejandro Pozuelo and Jozy Altidore entered the game in the 61st minute after lengthy injury absences. But the two designated players were unable to spark a comeback.
