2024 CPL Regular Season — Match #82
Atlético Ottawa vs. Vancouver FC
August 31, 2024 at 4:00 p.m. PT/7:00 p.m. ET
TD Place in Ottawa, Ontario
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After three straight road matches, Atlético Ottawa are back home, as they get set to host Vancouver FC at TD Place on Saturday.

The first meeting between these two sides at TD Place in 2024, after both of their previous matches were held out in British Columbia, it’s a big clash for both teams, who will be hungry to win, for different reasons.

For Ottawa, it’s simple – they’ll need to win to help keep pace in a tight CPL title race, as just three points separated the top four teams heading into this matchday.

Currently sitting in second place, they want to hold onto that spot, and potentially even climb, but they can only do the latter with a victory.If not, a loss could push them down to as low as fourth place, which would be a big blow given how much of this season they’ve spent in the top two.

Because of that, look for them to make the most of this return home. Having failed to win in their last three home games, they’ll want to get back to winning ways in front of their supporters, which would provide a big boost for them in this title race.

To do that, they’ll have to be airtight defensively, as they’ve allowed 12 goals in their last six games, but if they can do that, it’ll go a long way for them, as they remain second in the CPL in goals for on the year, showing that they’ll be able to score enough to win provided they keep things tidy at the back.

“Yeah, we have big motivation in this game,” Ottawa head coach, Carlos González, said. “I think we have a lot of reasons to want to do a good game. I think that the team has performed well over the last two weeks, (even) though we dropped two points in the last action of last game, so I think this is a good moment to show the growth of the team to our our fans and the people that support us through thick and thin, as I think that the team needs a good win at home.”

As for Vancouver, they remain locked into the fifth and final playoff spot after a dramatic road win over Valour, who they defeated thanks to a 97th minute winner from new arrival Ayman Sellouf. Thanks to that victory, they sit six points ahead of sixth place, a lead they’ll want to build on as they chase their first-ever playoff berth in just their second season as a club.

Plus, they remain within touching distance of the title race, sitting six points behind fourth-place York United and seven points behind Ottawa, meaning they could close that Ottawa gap to four points with a win in this six-point clash between the two teams.

Therefore, they’ll want to use that Valour win as a catalyst for bigger things, and there’d be nothing bigger than being able to mount a late-season title push after spending a large chunk of the summer sitting in the middle of the table.

With four of their next five games coming against the four teams directly above them in the table, they’ve got an opportunity to make a statement with a strong run of games, and that starts with a big performance away to Ottawa.

“I’m not satisfied about where we are (in the table),” Vancouver head coach, Afshin Ghotbi, said this week. “I think collectively, we have higher expectations, so we are constantly challenging the players every day to be the best version of themselves, and to challenge themselves to be a better player every day.”

In terms of player availability, Atlético Ottawa have had a full set of players at training this week, including Kévin dos Santos and Maxim Tissot, who have been out with long-term injuries, although it’s to be seen if they’ll be fit enough to jump back into the matchday squad quite yet. As for Vancouver, they’ll be without James Cameron after he was suspended for earning a second yellow card in their last match – otherwise, Vasco Fry looks like an option to start after he left the Valour game early with a knock.

3 THINGS TO WATCH

• Ottawa looking to return to strong home form against road warriors Vancouver: To start the year, Ottawa were tough to beat at home, amassing a record of 4W-2D-1L (14 PTS) in their first seven games, but they’ve slipped a bit in the three home games they’ve played since, losing two and drawing one. Because of that, they’ll look to finish off the season on a high note at home, where they’ve got four more regular season home matches to play. If they’ll want to play at home during the playoffs, they’ll have to find a way to get results out of those games, and that starts against Vancouver. For what it’s worth, however, they’ll do so against a Vancouver side that has become tough to beat away. After losing three of their first four road games of the season, they’ve lost just one of their last five, giving them a record of 3W-2D-4L (11 PTS) in nine road games, with that points total the fourth-best in the CPL. With a draw in this game, however, they’d tie the third-best road point total, and a win would give them sole possession of third spot, which is currently held by York United, who have played an extra road game compared to Vancouver. Therefore, keep an eye on this battle, as Ottawa will look to rediscover their home form while Vancouver looks to stay hot on the road, making it interesting to see which trend wins out (or if they cancel each other out, leading to a draw).

• Can Ottawa erase late-game woes? Ottawa’s recent draw away to Halifax will have been a déjà-vù moment for Ottawa supporters, as Ottawa drew after a late equalizer from Halifax. Especially given that Ottawa also recently dropped points in similar fashion in their last home game, as they fell 2-1 to Cavalry on a late winner from Ali Musse on August 3rd, some will hope that’s not the start of a trend from Ottawa, who made a habit of giving up late goals in 2023, a tendency that likely cost them a playoff spot. For what it’s worth, this year’s Ottawa’s team has usually been on the right side of the late heroics, scoring several late goals this season, something they even did in this recent Halifax draw, so they’ve done a good job of finishing games strongly, so they aren’t too worried about this recent trend. At the same time, it’ll be something to watch out for, and serve as a good reminder of how to best manage games this time of the year. With wins more valuable than ever, teams will push right until the final whistle to win, meaning that only those who stay locked in and focused the whole game will be rewarded, as Ottawa knows well. “Last season was last season,” González offered. “It was a completely different context, and this season is this season. I’ve been analyzing those numbers and those stats, and I think that we score more in the last 10 minutes that we’ve received, so, yeah, if you look the picture of the last game, we’re not happy about that or receiving a late goal against Cavalry, but if you analyze the global picture of our season, we are a team that is scoring more in the last minutes than we are conceding.”

• Vancouver hoping Valour game a hint of what’s to come for attack: If Vancouver’s to finish the year with a late-season offensive explosion, their recent Valour win could be seen as the key spark for that, as they showed a glimpse of what their attack could look like going forward. First, 2023 standouts Mikaël Cantave and Gabriel Bitar linked up for a nice Bitar goal, showing what they can do when they run into space in transition, before Ayman Sellouf got into the action late on with his first goal for his new club, marking it in style with that aforementioned 97th minute winner. Once Sellouf is fully fit, it’s expected those three start together in Vancouver’s attack, which is an exciting proposition, as all have shown they can be dangerous offensive difference-makers in the CPL, finding ways to bring games alive with their offensive skills. Plus, one can’t forget who will lead the line in front of them, Alejandro Díaz, who is expected to benefit from the service that Cantave, Bitar and Sellouf underneath him could provide. Safe to say, there’s a recipe there for Vancouver to score goals, and they’ll want to prove that in this Ottawa game and beyond after showing a glimpse of what they can do against Valour. “I’ve always believed that you need to have different players with different profiles that can be goal dangerous, score goals and be providers,” Ghotbi said of his new attacking quintet. “I think we have four players for three positions, and I feel that all four of them have different strengths, different qualities, and they all actually complement each other (very well).”

PROJECTED STARTING XIs

Atlético Ottawa: Ingham; Morer, Didić, Walker, Iliadis, de Brienne; Tabla, Sissoko, Zapater, Aparicio; del Campo

Vancouver FC: Irving; Chung, Romeo, Enyou, Campagna; Fry, Rommens; Cantave, Bitar, Sellouf; Díaz

ALL-TIME SERIES

Atlético Ottawa wins: 4 || Vancouver FC wins: 1 || Draws: 1

Last meeting:

July 12, 2024 — Vancouver FC 0-3 Atlético Ottawa

KEY QUOTES

“I’m very pleased with the reactions of the players that have started, but also (those who have) been on the bench the last games. I’m very pleased about the reactions of the players, because they’re receiving a good opportunity, and I feel that they are performing well, the reaction is positive, and they are showing me that they want to play more and that they want to step onto the field, so they are doing great training sessions, and they are speaking how they have to speak – so I think that I’m very pleased. ” — Atlético Ottawa head coach Carlos González