ZAPOPAN, Mexico – Justin Braun scored in the 64th minute as the Montreal Impact defeated Mexican club Estudiantes Tecos 1-0 in a pre-season match Tuesday.
Braun used a left footed volley of Josh Gardner’s deep ball to beat goalkeeper Guadaloupe Martinez.
“It was a good team goal,” said Braun. “I made a run and Josh gave me a great ball.
“It’s never easy to play Mexican teams in Mexico, but the team did well and we had a good performance.”
The Impact were coming off a 0-0 draw with Chivas Mexico on Monday.
The Major League Soccer expansion club fielded completely different lineups for each half.
Sinisa Uniparipovic had two good scoring chances early and striker Brian Ching had another in the 38th minute that forced a good save from Martinez. Gardner set up Sanna Nyassi for another chance to open the second half that was also saved.
“We had good moments, but still other moments when guys were not on the same page,” said coach Jesse Marsch. “As a starting point, I’m pleased with the effort.
“We tried different guys at different positions. It’s going to be a work in progress until the beginning of the season.”
The Impact play ITESO University in Guadalajara on Wednesday and face Atlas, one of Mexico’s top clubs, on Thursday.
