Final Score: Atlético Ottawa 2-2 Halifax Wanderers FC
Goalscorers: Rodríguez 60′, Sissoko 79′; Probo 20′, Rea 47′
Game of the 2025 season: 1
CPL match: 597

Match in a minute or less

Atlético Ottawa and the Halifax Wanderers claimed a point apiece at TD Place in Saturday’s 2025 CPL season opener, as the hosts Atleti battled back from two goals down in the second half for a 2-2 draw.

The Wanderers took an early lead courtesy of Giorgio Probo, and doubled it with Sean Rea’s effort moments after halftime, but David Rodríguez brought Atleti back to life at the hour mark before Aboubacar Sissoko smashed home the equalizer with just over 10 minutes to play.

Three Observations

New-look Atleti come alive late, show glimpse of new identity

Atlético Ottawa’s new head coach Diego Mejía has been very clear throughout preseason that he expects his team to play aggressive, front-footed soccer, with a view to creating more chances and scoring more goals than they did the past few years.

There was plenty of evidence of a new tactical identity at work in how Ottawa set up on Saturday, from the wing-backs bombing up the touchlines to the defensive pressing up front from Ballou Tabla and Sam Salter. They were not content to cede possession or absorb pressure, and they sought to move the ball quickly to try and break Halifax’s lines.

This being the first game of the year, Atleti’s new style is not quite yet as well-oiled as they’ll want it to be by midseason. The first half saw their energy tail off after Halifax’s opening goal, and not every attacking move was fully in sync.

The ones that were, though, were clear signs of a team capable of playing excellent football this year.

Prior to this game, Atlético Ottawa had only come back from two goals down to avoid defeat twice before. More often, it would’ve felt unlikely that they’d find a way back into a match when trailing by two in the second half. Conceding the Rea goal seemed to wake up the home side; the shoulders didn’t sag, and instead the pace heightened.

Mejía was rewarded for keeping some of his weapons in reserve, as he was able to bring energetic sparkplugs Manny Aparicio and Aboubacar Sissoko into the game off the bench, at a point when Atleti needed them most.

If Ottawa are consistently able to find a second gear later in games, as they did in this one, they have the quality and depth to be title contenders in the CPL. Their hunger to push forward and break down an opponent when trailing is perhaps the most encouraging thing from the first chapter of the Diego Mejía era.

Halifax show creativity, freedom in midfield, but let it slip late

Under Patrice Gheisar, Halifax have developed a clear identity as a possession-oriented, footballing side, and it appears the 2025 Wanderers’ fundamentals are similar. What looked newer on Saturday, though, was a heightened energy and dynamism in the way they played forward.

The Wanderers used similar formations in 2024, with four nominal central midfielders, but rarely in those games did they look dangerous in attack, instead getting stuck in the middle without enough forward runners in the wide areas. In this early showing, however, they were much more fluid.

Players had been given more license to interchange with one another; Giorgio Probo, Ryan Telfer, Sean Rea and Jason Bahamboula all occupied a number of positions across the front line and played off one another.

There was a clear directive to run in behind and draw the attention of Ottawa’s defenders, disrupting an otherwise well-organized opponent. The strategy came with its share of risks — Halifax went offside five times — but it was effective. Both of their goals came from situations where they drew Atleti out of their shape: Bahamboula got to the side of the box quickly and allowed Probo to sneak in unmarked for the first goal, and the second was a well-devised routine from a throw-in, where Rea made a clever run between the defenders and got Kevin Dos Santos on an uncomfortable turn.

It’s frustrating for the Wanderers that they let a 2-0 lead slip; after they let a number of points slip a year ago, they’ll be focusing this week on not letting old weaknesses creep back into their game. It’s probably a case more of Ottawa increasing their energy than Halifax losing steam in the second half, but there was undoubtedly a point between the two Atleti goals where the Wanderers were chasing the ball, struggling to regain possession or re-establish their own tempo.

Late in the match however, the Wanderers still had plenty of opportunities to reclaim the lead; Bahamboula hit the post, and they had several other dangerous balls played into the box.

This early in the season, Gheisar and co. will be taking more positives than negatives from this one, considering the entertaining, free-flowing football they showed they intend to play this year.

San Luis loanee Rodríguez dazzles with energy, pace in box-office debut

With such an interesting cast of new signings arriving in Ottawa over the winter, one that flew somewhat under the radar was David Rodríguez, a 22-year-old attacker who’s one of three Mexican players on loan this year from Atlético San Luis.

Rodríguez is a product of the FC Dallas academy in Major League Soccer — which has produced a number of top-quality U.S. internationals, like Weston McKennie, Chris Richards and Ricardo Pepi — and in 2021 he returned to his home town San Luis Potosí to join the Liga MX club. He has already made nine appearances in the Mexican top flight, and from just one game in the CPL it’s evident that Rodríguez has the quality to one day be a regular player at that high level.

Playing in a right-sided number 10 position alongside Ballou Tabla and just below Sam Salter, Rodríguez was the most impressive part of Atleti’s attack throughout the game, even in an otherwise lacklustre first half for the hosts. It was his energy that picked them up after going 2-0 down, and his attacking instinct that brought them into the game.

Rodríguez demonstrated early on that he has pace to spare, and has the confidence to run at — or around — defenders when on the ball. He has a knack for turning toward goal that’s hard to teach, and every time the ball came to him he seemed insistent on making something happen. After a litany of other chances both taken and created for others in the first 60 minutes, it was Rodríguez who made a clever run into the box to get on the end of Sam Salter’s flick, and he then needed one more bit of skill to get around Rayane Yesli and score.

It was a comprehensive man-of-the-match performance from Rodríguez, who not only led his team in shots with four, but also created five chances, won possession five times, made three tackles and had a stunning 13 touches in the Halifax penalty area.

What They Said

“The advantage I have as a coach at Atletico Ottawa is I have an amazing roster. I have two players per spot. I thought the game plan with [Zapater] and Noah [Verhoeven] would be the best plan. We played a really good first half, then I had the advantage to have players like Aparicio, Abou [Sissoko], Didić on the bench for this game, so they entered and changed the match. I’m very excited for that.” — Atlético Ottawa head coach Diego Mejía

“We have our principles, and as long as the players are playing within that principle, they have the freedom. I think because of that freedom, it’s very hard [for an opponent] to predict patterns that are set, because things are really coming from improv and instincts.” — Halifax Wanderers head coach Patrice Gheisar

CanPL.ca Player of the Match

David Rodríguez, Atlético Ottawa

The Mexican number 10 looks like he’s going to be a special player for Atleti this year, after an outstanding debut where the entire attack flowed through him.

What’s next?

Ottawa’s next endeavour takes them to the west coast, where they’ll play Vancouver FC next Sunday, April 13 (3 p.m. PT/6 p.m. ET). The Wanderers will be in action earlier that Sunday, when they take on York United FC in Toronto (3 p.m. ET/4 p.m. AT).

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