Toronto FC holds CF Montréal to 0-0 draw in return from MLS break

MONTREAL — CF Montréal and Toronto FC spent nearly two months on the sidelines during the lengthy World Cup break.

It looked every bit like it in their return to MLS action Thursday night.

Montreal drove the play but couldn’t solve TFC goalkeeper Luka Gavran in a 0-0 draw that featured plenty of rust, little rhythm and a lack of finishing at Stade Saputo.

“I don’t think we played particularly well,” Toronto coach Robin Fraser said. “Both teams looked like they hadn’t played in two months.”

Montreal (4-8-3) put in the better showing of the two rival sides but still settled for a single point despite dominating the shot count 15-7 — including 3-0 on target — at Stade Saputo.

Hennadiy Synchuk was dangerous down the right flank all night, though he failed to finish on a handful of opportunities, especially in the first half.

The Ukrainian international later created Montreal’s best chance in the 66th minute, yet Gavran denied his blistering strike from the right side of the box.

“We’re good in quantity, we’re not good in quality at all. And for me, it cost us two points today, this lack of aggressiveness on the ball when we get into the final third,” Montreal interim coach Philippe Eullaffroy said. “We had already identified this problem and today it was very visible.

“There’s a sadness of having missed two points. I think for the players it’s the same thing. There’s a feeling that we should have done better.”

Meanwhile, Toronto (3-6-6) hasn’t won a match since April 4 at home against Colorado — a run of 10 games.

Fraser’s squad barely threatened in Montreal’s half and failed to register a shot on target on an easy night for keeper Thomas Gillier.

“It was kind of a messy game. No real rhythm either way,” Fraser said. “The connections weren’t as sharp as we would like them to be.

“Overall it just was not a really precisely executed game.”

Montreal bounced back from a historically poor 1-7-0 start to the MLS season under since-fired head coach Marco Donaldel. Eullaffroy took over on an interim basis and helped settle the club heading into the summer hiatus.

The MLS club is also heading to the Canadian championship semifinals after a pair of 2-1 victories over Canadian Premier League side Vancouver FC last week. Montreal will face the Vancouver Whitecaps in the final four.

The home side appeared determined to continue its momentum Thursday.

Synchuk, with striker Prince Owusu serving a one-game ban for yellow card accumulation, looked particularly engaged. He tested Gavran in the first minute, controlling a pass in the penalty area and striking a half-volley into the TFC keeper’s legs.

Minutes later, Synchuk juked defender Jackson Gilman between his legs before sailing the ball high. The 20-year-old winger then sent a weak-footed shot wide from inside the box following a setup from Noah Streit.

“There have been several matches like that: we have good opportunities at the beginning of the match and we are not clinical at all,” Eullaffroy said. “They didn’t have a shot, so you also have to see the good side. We contained them well on the defensive side.

“But when you want to win, what matters most is to score more than the opponent, and today we didn’t do it.”

Neither side generated much in a sleepy start to the second half until Gavran thwarted Synchuk’s strong strike in the 66th minute.

Synchuk missed another opportunity on the ensuing corner when the ball fell to his feet in the penalty area. He dribbled around a defender but couldn’t get the ball past defender Alonso Coello.

“We wanted to win before the game and I guess everybody felt that we were supposed to win this game,” Synchuk said. “We played way better and we were disappointed with the result.”

“Of course, I want to score,” he added. “But it didn’t happen. I hope I saved it for the next games.”

Former star Montreal attacking midfielder Djordje Mihailovic entered for Toronto in the 74th minute, marking his first appearance since being diagnosed with a pelvic stress fracture in April.

The substitution did not immediately rally TFC, however, with Gavran forced to stop Daniel Rios’s shot from outside the box three minutes later.

In one late chance for Toronto, Daniel Salloi missed his right-footed shot wide right from outside the box.

The matchup turned physical at times between the two rival sides trying to climb into the Eastern Conference playoff picture. TFC midfielder Richie Laryea, in his first match since playing for Canada at the World Cup, shoved Montreal’s Victor Loturi to the ground following a challenge in the 14th minute.

UP NEXT

Montreal: Visits Nashville SC on Wednesday.

Toronto: Visits New England Revolution on Wednesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2026.

Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press