New York City FC will travel to Montreal this weekend to play a game that many in the league have described as one of the hardest despite Montreal’s lack of results in 2025. City, who have struggled on the road with just one win away from the five boroughs, will hope to add to the French Canadian team’s woes by adding a sixth loss to the home ledger.
“We know what we have to do with these kind of defenders,” said striker Mounsef Bakrar about the opponents. “Even if they lost their last game, it doesn’t mean it’s going to be an easy game for us. We know this opponent has its ups-and-downs. When they played here against us they performed well. We need to put more focus on this game because we have something to play for after losing the last game at home against them.”
City are coming off of mixed results in recent weeks. A 4-0 win over Atlanta at the end of June capped off a busy month with some momentum. However home losses to Houston and a draw on the road against Nashville have the club searching for answers as to how to properly gain consistency. Strikers like Bakrar have had their chances but been unable to be clinical when the team needs them most.
For Montreal, the season isn’t one where they have high hopes of winning MLS Cup. However, they have historically played the role of spoiler for teams looking to solidify their playoff positions. Currently NYC are in eighth place but hang precariously ahead of Chicago and Charlotte by just three points. A loss on the road could see them fall below the playoff line more than halfway through the 2025 season.
“I always ask my coaches about the the things I need to improve on,” said Bakrar. “I’m really glad that I have these coaches. They really help me with everything I need and I am always learning, even when I don’t play.”
Saturday will be another learning experience for Bakrar and City as the team travels to Montreal for the last time in 2025. NYC hopes that they can put the sting of their unfortunate home loss to Montreal behind them and come away with much needed points to improve their standing in the Eastern Conference.
photo by Jordan Bank