Orlando City’s Gallese, Montreal’s Sirois stellar in scoreless opener

By The Associated Press on February 24, 2024.

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – Pedro Gallese finished with five saves for Orlando City, Jonathan Sirois stopped four shots for CF Montreal and the clubs played to a scoreless draw in a Major League Soccer season opener on Saturday night.

Gallese has not allowed a goal in the first match of a season since he joined Orlando City in 2020, posting a 2-0-3 record. Orlando City has opened each of its 10 seasons in the league at home, going 3-0-7. That included a 2-0 victory over Montreal to begin the 2023 campaign.

Montreal earned a point on the road in its first match with Laurent Courtois at the helm. Courtois managed the Columbus Crew 2 each of the past two MLS NEXT Pro seasons. He took the Crew 2 to the championship match both seasons, winning it in 2022.

Montreal improves to 10-8-4 all time versus Orlando City.

Josef Martínez, who is ninth on the all-time list with 105 goals, made his debut for Montreal – subbing in the 67th minute for fellow newcomer Matías Cóccaro. Cóccaro, a Uruguayan striker, arrived from Argentina’s Huracán with big expectations.

Montreal travels to play FC Dallas on March 2. Orlando City hits the road to play Inter Miami on March 2.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sport

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