The CPL Shield race runs through the nation’s capital on Sunday as Atlético Ottawa host Vancouver FC at TD Place for a third time in all competitions this season.
Atleti head into the penultimate weekend of the CPL season two points behind Forge FC, who take on Cavalry on Friday night in Calgary. The city of Ottawa will be watching that match closely, knowing that any dropped points for the Hamilton club will open a door for Atleti to close that gap.
Still, Atlético Ottawa know that regardless of what happens in Calgary, they need to take care of their own business — something they failed to do last weekend. Leading twice in Winnipeg on Sunday, they drew 3-3 after conceding a late stoppage-time equalizer scored by Erik Pop. Atleti would have come into this weekend tied on points with Forge at the top of the table. Instead, that two-point gap remains.
Should Atleti drop points again, their title dreams could be over. A loss, and a Forge point on Friday, or a draw, and a Forge win the Shield. If they can win, however, they go into the final weekend of the CPL season with hopes of lifting a second CPL Shield still alive, regardless of how Forge fare in Calgary.
The capital club have been outstanding at home all season. With a win or draw on Sunday, they’d become the first team in league history to go undefeated at home in a full CPL regular season. Forge, of course, could match that with a result next weekend against York United.
Atleti have been no strangers to history this season, setting a CPL single-season goal record last week as they now sit on an incredible 53. They also already have accumulated three more points than in any other campaign in club history, including their CPL Shield-winning 2022 season (49 points).
While their opponent, Vancouver FC, still sits at the bottom of the CPL table, that does not indicate just how good the Eagles have been over the past month. Aside from reaching the TELUS Canadian Championship final and performing well in a 4-2 loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps, they are unbeaten in four in the CPL.
That included equalizing late to be the first team away team in the CPL in two months to earn a point at Hamilton Stadium in a 1-1 draw with Forge FC. Vancouver FC have the best record in the league over their past four matches.
In fact, Atlético Ottawa are the only other team in the league without a loss in their past four, making this a meeting of two of the hottest teams in the CPL at this stage in the season. Historically, Atleti have dominated this fixture, as Vancouver have never won at TD Place Stadium — losing on five of six trips to Ottawa, including both times this season.
That didn’t matter in the most recent meeting in the capital back on September 18, however, as a 1-0 loss was enough to see Vancouver defeat Atlético Ottawa 3-2 on aggregate in the Canadian Championship semi-final. Atleti would surely love to get a measure of revenge for that loss, even if it won’t be their primary motivation on Sunday.
