| Cavalry FC vs. Atlético Ottawa Aug. 22 at 4:30 p.m. ET / 1:30 p.m. PT ATCO Field Watch Live: TSN, OneSoccer Tickets available here |
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Last weekend, Atlético Ottawa consolidated their position above the playoff line with a vital victory over FC Supra du Québec. Midweek in the nation's capital, they leapt above Vancouver FC into third place with a 4-0 victory. Now, they set their sights on closing the gap to the top two as they head to Calgary on Saturday.
Their hosts at ATCO Field, Cavalry FC, currently sit seven points above them in the table, with a game in hand, and were briefly in first place after a massive 2-1 win over rivals Forge FC. The Hamilton club retook the lead with a win against Supra on Wednesday.
It was a huge moment for the Calgary club in their pursuit of the CPL Shield, and made it 16 matches unbeaten at ATCO Field, with their last loss at Spruce Meadows coming on July 26, 2025.
No visiting team, however, has won more at ATCO Field than Atlético Ottawa, who have a 5-2-2 all-time record in Calgary. But so far this year, Cavalry have dominated the season series, with a 3-1 victory in Calgary back on April 12 in their home opener, before a 3-0 win in the nation's capital on July 4. Saturday, however, will be the first meeting with Gustavo Leal on the Atlético Ottawa touchline.
Saturday's clash features the league's two best attacks. Cavalry lead the way with 33 goals scored, but Atlético Ottawa, who set a league record for most goals scored in a CPL season last year, are not far behind with 31.
It also features two of the league's most in-form attackers. Cavalry's Tobias Warschewski has five assists this month alone, while Atleti's Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau is quickly becoming a CPL star with two goals and two assists in August.
It is Cavalry's league-best defending, however, which has been the biggest difference between them. Through 17 regular-season matches this season, Cavalry are yet to allow more than a single goal in a match. Ismael Oketokoun's goal for Forge last weekend was just the fifth a team has managed from open play against them this season.
In attack, the Cavs have found success of late by committee. Their past 14 goals have been scored by ten different players.
For Atlético Ottawa, this will be their fifth match in 14 days, a busy but productive stretch for a side who have now won three straight league matches. Cavalry are the only other team in the league who have won more than once in their past three matches -- making this a meeting of the league's most in-form sides as well.
A big part of that is Atleti's ability in clutch moments. They have now scored nine winners or equalizers in the 80th minute or later this season. Cavalry FC are the next closest in this statistic with four. So expect drama until the final whistle on Saturday.
The score when that whistle sounds will dictate whether a third team has joined the CPL regular season race, or if Cavalry can continue to chase down Forge at the top.
NEWS & NOTES
- While players are recovering, Atlético Ottawa aren't expecting any returns from their lengthy injury list on Saturday, which includes Tyr Duhaney-Walker, Sergei Kozlovskiy, Jonantán Villal and Diego Gutierrez. Leal, however, confirmed the rest of the squad recovered well and, other than Richie Ennin, all the other sidelined players are in the final stages of recovery.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Atlético Ottawa: Kalongo; Aguilar, Cloutier, Mbombio; Assi, Aparicio, Arnaud, Garcia; Tabla, Habibullah, Chateau
Cavalry FC: Ingham; Pearlman, Didić, Klomp, Kamdem; Paton, Camargo; Musse, Warschewski, Edwards; Elva
KEY QUOTES
"As we're getting closer to the run-in, it's where games do matter. The points feel bigger because now there's either separation or there's congregation, and we want to be the group that creates the separation." - Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr.
"The vibe is so good in the dressing room, and this is important. I think that confidence is so important in this moment." - Atlético Ottawa head coach Gustavo Leal