| Atlético Ottawa vs. Inter Toronto Aug. 28 at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT TD Place in Ottawa, Ont. Watch Live: OneSoccer, TSN Tickets available here |
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Inter Toronto head into the nation's capital on Friday night unbeaten in their past three matches in the league, and their past five regular-season meetings with Atlético Ottawa.
The two sides last met back on July 17 in Ottawa, a match where Gustavo Leal made his debut on the Atleti touchline. The first meeting of the season, on May 1, was a dominant 4-1 victory for Inter Toronto.
Atlético Ottawa have won four of their six CPL matches since, moving up into third place in the table. Inter Toronto, meanwhile, have just one win in that span, and have slipped to seventh. They are now separated by 12 points in the table, although Inter Toronto does have three games in hand.
Despite their recent record against Inter Toronto, the fact that this match is played on their home turf also gives them a big boost. Atlético Ottawa have lost just once in their past 31 matches at home in all competitions.
Inter Toronto, meanwhile, have won just once away from home this season in eight matches, and scored a league-low six road goals.
Changing their road fortunes in the capital on Friday, however, would go a long way toward setting the tone for a busy stretch ahead. Starting with this match, they play three games in 12 days, and seven in the next 30.
Atleti, meanwhile, are coming off of a busy stretch of their own, playing three matches in six days, culminating in a trip across the country to Calgary. Winning the first two against FC Supra and Vancouver FC, they fell to Cavalry this past Saturday 3-1, further widening the gap between them and the league's top two teams.
The match will also see two of the league's youngest goalkeepers go head-to-head, both of whom are in excellent form at the moment. Atlético Ottawa's Chris Kalongo, 24, has started their past ten matches and was named the CPL's Allstate Goalkeeper of the Month for July.
Ivan Pavela, 21, meanwhile, has started Inter Toronto's past five, and was in the Gatorade CPL Team of the Week for Matchweek 18 after making nine saves in a 1-1 draw with FC Supra du Québec.
Both will be vital to their teams' fortunes down the stretch, as Atlético Ottawa aim to maintain and strengthen their playoff position, while Inter Toronto seek to make a late-season push into the top four.
Friday night is an opportunity for one of these sides to get a big three points closer to their goal.
NEWS & NOTES
- Inter Toronto will be without striker Tomasz Skublak due to yellow card accumulation.
- Sergei Kozlovskiy has returned from injury for Atlético Ottawa and will be available for selection on Friday.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Atlético Ottawa: Kalongo; Mbomio, Cloutier, Aguilar; Assi, Aparicio, Arnaud, Antinoro; García, Tabla, Fleuriau Chateau
Inter Toronto: Pavela; Singh, Sturing, León; Guzmán, Yeates, Bassett, Córdova; Badibanga, Altobelli, Almagro
KEY QUOTES
"I hope that we have better luck than [last game vs. Inter Toronto] because to me we had a lot of ball possession, a lot of opportunities, but in the end it was 1-1. We are stronger than before because week by week, game by game, we can improve some points. I think this group is stronger... so I think that the game will be different, will be better, and I hope that the result will be better also." - Atlético Ottawa head coach Gustavo Leal
"This season we've done well against them. We beat them at home 4-1 and went there and got a tie. So that's four of six possible points. This team is motivated. This team is growing, and we understand what type of match it will be." - Inter Toronto FC head coach Mauro Eustáquio
"We're gonna try to go there to win, of course, because we need those points. It's a pleasure always to face these types of teams because they have a lot of quality. They always play with passion, and that's how we like to play." - Inter Toronto FC defender Oswaldo Léon