Carlos Coronel made six saves for his 10th clean sheet of the season as the visiting New York Red Bulls kept their MLS Cup playoff hopes alive with a 2-0 victory at CF Montreal on Saturday night.
Tim Parker and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting each scored goals for New York (12-12-7, 43 points), which remained within two points of ninth and the final Eastern Conference playoff spot with the win.
It was just the second road victory in 16 tries (2-10-4) for the Red Bulls, who completed a regular-season series sweep of Montreal for the first time in team history. Coronel also had a five-save shutout in a 1-0 win over Montreal on April 26 in Harrison. N.J.
Thomas Gillier finished with four saves for Montreal (5-17-9, 24 points), which remained one point behind 14th-place D.C. United in the Eastern Conference basement.
New York took a 1-0 lead in the 23rd minute on a goal by defender Parker, who headed in a flick-on by Kyle Duncan on a corner kick inside the far right post for his first goal of the season.
The Red Bulls, who had scored just four goals in their previous five games, made it 2-0 just six minutes later on Choupo-Moting’s 16th goal. The Cameroon international spun away from a pair of defenders on the left edge of the six-yard box and then booted a sharp-angled left-footed shot through the legs of Gillier and inside the far right post.
Montreal’s best scoring chance in the first half occurred in the 39th minute when Efrain Morales headed a free kick off the left post.
Coronel came up with his best save of the match early in the second half when he dove to deflect Samuel Piette’s right-footed blast from the right side of the box that was headed for the bottom right corner.
–Field Level Media
