(CP) – 2 hours ago
MONTREAL — Cristian Arrieta scored on a penalty kick and the Puerto Rico Islanders took sole possession of first place in the United Soccer Leagues First Division with a 1-0 win over the Montreal Impact on Sunday.
Puerto Rico (9-4-7) was awarded the penalty in the 45th minute when Impact defender Adam Braz tripped Islanders forward Nick Addlery in the 18-yard box. Arrieta scored his seventh goal when he unleashed a shot to the right of the Impact net, leaving no chance to goalkeeper Srdjan Djekanovic who dove to the opposite side.
«We certainly deserved better today,» said Impact assistant coach Andrea Di Pietrantonio, who replaced suspended head coach Marc Dos Santos on Montreal’s sidelines. «We made a defensive error and they made us pay for it by scoring on a penalty. When you don’t score goals, a situation like this one is even more painful. We are currently lacking confidence in front of the net.»
Montreal (5-8-3) was shut out for a fifth consecutive game, tying a dubious club record. The Impact have not scored in the last 460 minutes of play.
«We created scoring chances and we moved the ball well during the whole game,» Impact captain Mauro Biello said. «Lately, we are having difficulty winning games so we have to work harder and find that confidence that we had last season.»
Montreal forward Roberto Brown was issued a red card at the end of the match following an argument with the referee. Braz received an automatic one-match suspension after being served his fifth yellow card this season.
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