Final Score: Atlético Ottawa 2-1 York United FC
Goalscorers: Aparicio 64′, Twardek 79′; Ricci 48′
Game of the 2024 season: 1
CPL match: 480
Match in a minute or less
The 2024 Canadian Premier League season kicked off on a chilly, rainy afternoon in Ottawa on Saturday, as a new-look Atlético Ottawa side had to battle from behind to take the year’s first three points over York United FC.
The visiting Nine Stripes came out strong and took a lead thanks to Austin Ricci just moments into the second half, but Atleti found their way back into the match quickly after falling behind. Manny Aparicio got his head on a loose rebound in the box to score his first for Ottawa in his club debut, and 15 minutes later, he provided the assist to a fellow debutant, Ottawa native Kris Twardek, who slotted a first-time finish, to put the home side in front.
Three Observations
New stars herald new era for Atlético Ottawa
Atlético Ottawa were arguably the biggest story of this CPL off-season, with how aggressive they were in signing stars from other teams in the league. Fans at TD Place did not have to wait long to get a glimpse of their newly-revamped team, with five debutants in the starting XI: former Pacific duo Manny Aparicio and Amer Didic, two-time CPL champion Aboubacar Sissoko, and Ottawa natives Matteo de Brienne (formerly of Valour) and Kris Twardek.
The question until now, though, was how coach Carlos González would be able to fit all his new talent onto one team. The early answer to that was an undoubtedly attack-minded lineup; de Brienne and Twardek played as left- and right-backs, respectively, but pushed high up the pitch. Sissoko, naturally a central midfielder with some experience at right-back, was up on the wing, playing as the right forward in the defensive 4-4-2 shape. Meanwhile, Ballou Tabla took the left flank, also looking to feed Samuel Salter through the middle.
In the middle of it all was Aparicio, who has become well known in the CPL for his engine and workrate in the centre of the pitch. The 28-year-old was as advertised on Saturday, covering ground in every area of the pitch. With Alberto Zapater primarily remaining deep and even dropping between the centre-backs, Aparicio had license to get involved in nearly every single Ottawa attacking move.
He won the ball seven times, as is his trademark — including the final-third tackle that led to the winning goal — and he was a key creative force, already showing that he’s developing a relationship with Tabla. His attacking intelligence put him in the right spot to score the first goal, and his drive led to the assist on the second, along with the deft flick with the outside of his foot that kept the ball in bounds and found Twardek.
Asked about the man-of-the-match performance from Aparicio, González was effusive in his praise, just as all of Aparicio’s prior CPL coaches have done before.”He’s pure energy,” González said. “He’s a contagious player. He’s a player that maybe the rest are not playing at a good level, but he creates good synergies and good dynamics in the game. I’m very happy having players like Manu, players like Didic, players like Kris, and Matteo.
“This sense of belonging, these types of players that wanted to be here, this is very important to have. They had many offers, many opportunities to be in other places, but they decided to be here. Those are the things that make the difference at the end of the day.”
York let down by moments, failure to capitalize on advantage
It’ll be a sombre ride back down the 401 to Toronto for York United on Saturday night, as the visiting side will leave feeling they left points — perhaps all three — on the table in Ottawa.
They had by far the better of the chances in the first half, including Austin Ricci’s open-goal opportunity that he sent wide of the post. Ricci made up for it by scoring in the second half, but he was clearly frustrated postmatch nonetheless.
“I think we had them pinned the whole first half,” Ricci said. “We arguably could’ve been up 3-0. Could’ve been up five, at the beginning of the second half. It sucks that that game swung the way it did, from could’ve been that score to ending how it did. It’s part of it though, you don’t finish your chances you get punished.”
York had three big chances in the first half and were, at one point around when they scored, leading the shots battle 10 to two. For the first hour or so, they didn’t necessarily dominate possession or even have more final third entries, but they created higher-quality opportunities that they couldn’t bury.
Then, after they did score, the staff and players felt they let their foot off the gas too much in an effort to protect the lead. Head coach Martin Nash was disappointed with how his side didn’t continue to press their advantage against an Ottawa side that could’ve been demoralized after conceding, and he was likewise frustrated with the defensive vulnerabilities that let the hosts back in the game. On both occasions, they had a chance to clear the ball from their box, but allowed Atleti to take the second phase and score.
“We let ourselves down in a few big moments,” Nash said. “We knew they were going to be dangerous on set pieces and we didn’t clear the corner for the first one. I know we had a chance to clear the second one and we tried to dribble out; you’ve got to deal with those moments.
“It happens a lot in these league when you get a lead; can you build from that lead and keep going? … I felt we kind of said, ‘We’ve got a lead, can we protect it?’ And if you do that too much you’re just allowing the other team to come on to you.”
Of course, as much as it’s been said that Ottawa have a brand new squad, York’s group is quite new as well. They had four debutants in the starting XI (and it would’ve been five if Frank Sturing hadn’t been injured in warmups), three of whom are brand new to the league, and still managed to play very impressive football against an opponent with so many high-profile CPL veterans.
York were looking all year in 2023 for a well-rounded 90-minute performance, and that eluded them again on Saturday, but there’s a lot to like about the quality in their team and plenty of reason for optimism considering the chances they created.
Atlético Ottawa find second gear to recover after falling behind
In the two previous seasons under Carlos González, Atlético Ottawa had never come from behind to win a CPL match — although they did in last year’s Canadian Championship game against Halifax, as González mentioned Saturday. Still, it’s been a recurring challenge for them to get back into games when they concede and are forced to open up and attack.
Fans in Ottawa have been promised a more attack-minded team this year, and this first glimpse should give plenty of hope that this version of Atleti is very much capable of opening the taps and going out on the front foot in search of a goal.
The first half saw Ottawa pinned back at times by giving the ball away, or failing to make good use of their own transitional moments, as York out-chanced the hosts with 1.6 expected goals to 0.06 for Ottawa in the opening 45 minutes. In the beginning of the second half, likewise, the Nine Stripes came out harder and were rewarded quickly.
After that wakeup call, though, Ottawa truly found their groove. Their fullbacks were continuously getting higher up the pitch, and they were getting Tabla into more dangerous areas, as they used an advantage in pace to get into more dangerous areas. Atleti had 15 more final third entries than York in the second half (35 to 20) with 12 touches in the box to York’s seven, and they forced the visitors into a more one-dimensional attack based around ambitious crosses from the flanks.
“I think we were more nervous at the beginning of the match,” Kris Twardek said postmatch. “It’s a new team, there’s obviously expectation, there’s a lot of unknowns; you never know quite how it’s going to materialize. For me, this is my first experience in the CPL so everything’s new. But in the second half, we probably had a bit more belief because the elements were kind of more in our favour. … I think there was a sense in that second half that we could get some momentum, we could score, and then when we equalized it, I felt that we were going to win the game.”
González agreed, pointing out that the team’s character helped them escape their rut before equalizing.”The team has a big personality, big character, and we stepped up and we reacted,” González said. “I don’t know if it was that York tried to protect the result or at the same time we wanted to bounce back in the game, but I think the reaction has been great from the guys.”
He added: “If we are capable to impose our football, to be dominant since the beginning, to win the game without all those situations to have to bounce back, it’ll be better, but at the end of the day you play against opponents that have also done good signings, have also done a good job in the off-season and it’s not going to be easy. We have a lot of solutions, a lot of players, a lot of quality.”
There are clear signs that Ottawa have work to do — certainly, they’ll need to clean things up at the back to avoid giving away the kinds of chances York had on Saturday — but early indications are that this will indeed be a new era for the club, perhaps with a few more goals.
CanPL.ca Player of the Match
Manny Aparicio, Atlético Ottawa
Aparicio continues to be a genuine star in the Canadian Premier League, and for the second year in a row he’s a major story on opening day. A goal and an assist for him on Saturday, plus seven balls won and four successful tackles in a tremendously active afternoon for the midfielder.
What’s next?
Both sides will be back at it next weekend, beginning on Saturday, April 20 when Atlético Ottawa remain at home to host Cavalry FC (2 p.m. ET). York, meanwhile, have their home opener on Sunday when they take on Forge FC in the first 905 Derby of the season.
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