The Union will host New York City FC in the Eastern Conference final again

MONTREAL — Union fans hoping to exact a measure of revenge against New York City for last year’s Eastern Conference final are going to get their shot.

And if the reigning champions’ two playoff wins so far have any Union supporters a little worried, they might have cause.

Within five minutes of kickoff at sun-splashed Stade Saputo, New York’s 21-year-old winger Gabriel Pereira danced down the right wing and carved CF Montréal’s defense apart, setting up Maxi Moralez for the opening goal of a 3-1 victory that sent the Pigeons on to a rematch with the Union next Sunday at Subaru Park (8:25 p.m., FS1 and Fox Deportes.)

“We played some football, we were deadly on the counterattack, and we can show that we can suffer and defend the box,” New York manager Nick Cushing said. “I think that gives everybody a lift knowing that as long as we play the moment, we have a good chance of getting results against anybody.”

Montreal had plenty of chances to score, which will hearten the Union. New York’s high-pressing back line will give Mikael Uhre and Julián Carranza more space to run into than FC Cincinnati’s deep-lying setup did on Thursday.

But New York’s last line of defense is its finest: goalkeeper Sean Johnson. He made three big saves in the first half and seven overall, reminding fans on both sides of the border why he’s a near-lock to make the U.S. World Cup team next month.

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Those saves did as much as the goals to quiet a sellout crowd of 19,619 in one of North America’s great soccer hotbeds. The team formerly known as the Impact existed for 20 years before joining MLS a decade ago, and many of its former players were in attendance. So was MLS commissioner Don Garber.

Before kickoff, one of the supporters’ clubs raised a banner that read “NEXT STATION: CHESTER” – a note of encouragement and subtle poke at NYCFC and the Union. Montreal fans traveled well in the pre-pandemic years, and experienced firsthand Subaru Park’s woeful public transit access.

While they dreamed of going one way, New York came charging down the opposite track. Santi Rodriguez, another of City’s bright young prospects, teamed up with Moralez on the right side while Héber raced up the middle. Moralez knew where to put the ball, and Héber cashed in.

New York’s 2-0 lead was so comfortable that Moralez was rested for the second half. And 13 minutes into the second half, Talles Magno replaced Héber — this year’s first playoff appearance for the player who scored the winning goal at Subaru Park in that conference final, after suffering what looked like a shoulder injury in New York’s regular-season finale.

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Three minutes later, Magno scored a superbly calm penalty kick that Pereira won after breaking free on the left wing.

Now the only fans cheering were the visiting New Yorkers, clad in sky blue and orange and waving balloons, scarves, and anything else that served the purpose. They kept going until the final whistle, past Djordje Mihailovic’s late goal that was only small consolation.

Those fans will keep going all week, until they return to another place they’ve gotten to know well. The Union have had NYCFC’s number this year, sweeping a regular-season series for the first time. And the Union should be at nearly full strength, not with 11 players sidelined by COVID19 protocols. This time, the only question is whether Alejandro Bedoya has shaken off his hip flexor injury.

At least, that’s the only question right now. This City team looks capable of asking many more next Sunday.

“A lot of momentum,” Cushing said, words as understated as they were ominous.

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