In an intense Canadian clash that took place at the BMO Field in Toronto, Ontario on August 20, 2023, Montreal triumphed over Toronto with a thrilling 3-2 victory. The match was filled with nail-biting moments and ended with Montréal bagging the bragging rights, much to the disappointment of the Toronto home crowd.

The first half saw Montreal take a commanding lead, scoring at the 18th minute as Mathieu Choinière notched the opening goal. The situation worsened for Toronto in the 25 minute, when an unfortunate own goal by Aimé Mabika increased Montréal's lead. The half-time saw Montreal leading with a score of 2-0, putting pressure on the Toronto side.

However, in the 66th minute, Toronto came back into the game with a goal by Federico Bernardeschi, assisted by L. Insigne. This injected some new-found hope into the Toronto side. Despite the growing momentum, Raoul Petretta's dismissal on a red card in the 77th minute after conceding a penalty was a turning point. Mathieu Choinière didn't squander this opportunity and increased Montreal's lead to 3-1 by converting the penalty.

As the match was getting into the final phase, it looked like Toronto FC was heading towards a defeat. But the 90+4 minute saw a shimmer of hope for Toronto as Federico Bernardeschi, once again, found the net with assistance from Jonathan Osorio.

In the end, Montreal managed to contain Toronto's late charge, securing a 3-2 victory. Social media posts revealed fans criticism towards Petretta's performance and the overall team performance of Toronto

Toronto's road to recovery will now lead them to a match against Columbus Crew on August 26, 2023, while Montréal will face New England on the same date. The final outcome of today's match deepens the competition in Major League Soccer and sets an exciting tone for the forthcoming matches.