RECAP + HIGHLIGHTS: Atlético Ottawa vs. Valour FC | June 15, 2025

Atlético Ottawa have won six straight home games (in all competitions) and remain atop the Canadian Premier League, after they triumphed by a 3-0 scoreline over Valour FC at TD Place on Sunday.

The visiting side came out firing, and challenged the Ottawa goal a few times in the first 20 minutes of the match. Kris Twardek, playing his former club in his hometown, had a great chance in the ninth minute where he found himself one-on-one with Nathan Ingham in the box, but he couldn't get his angle quite right and put his shot wide of the goal. Later, Kian Williams came inches from scoring an absolute stunner with a shot about 25 yards out, but it too whistled just wide of the right goalpost.

Atleti's Sam Salter, who scored four last time these sides met, had a golden chance of his own a few minutes later, but Valour keeper Eleias Himaras did an excellent job coming off his line and steering away Salter's strike with his leg. Shortly after the half-hour mark, Diogo Ressurreição put an attempted screamer off the top of the crossbar, as still the two sides traded jabs and couldn't find the back of the net.

Just seconds before halftime, however, Ottawa finally landed a blow. The ball came into the box from high, and David Rodríguez attempted to bring it down, jostling with Valour's Raphael Ohin to get a foot on it. Ohin mistimed his attempt to clear, kicking through the back of Rodríguez's leg and sending him to ground, which was enough for referee Roberto D'Alesio to award a penalty.

Ballou Tabla took the spot kick for Atlético, just as he did last week at Pacific, and scored in the bottom right corner to send the hosts into the break with a lead.

Early in the second frame, a newly-invigorated Ottawa side doubled their lead quickly with a big of quality, incisive football. Gabriel Antinoro found Manny Aparicio on the right side of the box, and Aparicio feathered a well-weighted ball across goal to Salter, who timed his run perfectly to head it in, just out of Himaras's reach.

A third goal arrived in the 73rd minute to wrap up the win for Ottawa, as this time it was Antinoro who benefited from a superb passing sequence as Rodríguez played to him on the right side of the box, and he flicked a shot from a difficult angle past Himaras to make it 3-0.

The visitors had a couple of chances in the final few moments of the game; Jordan Faria put one just wide, and found himself stymied by Nathan Ingham seconds later.

Valour could not, in the end, find a way through to mar Ottawa's clean sheet, as it ended 3-0 to keep Atleti comfortably in first place.

BOX SCORE

Lineups

Atlético Ottawa: Ingham; Cloutier, Abatneh, Kozlovskiy; Antinoro, Aparicio (Hartill 88'), Zapater (Sissoko 69'), Coulanges (Ortega 82'); Rodríguez, Salter (Patterson 82'), Tabla (Khoury 82')

Valour FC: Himaras; Alarcón, Fernandez, Egwu, Antonoglou (Wandje 46'); Ohin (Faria 76'), Figueiredo; Twardek, Ressurreição (Mlah 76'), Williams (Venâncio 58'); Layne (Morgan 58')

Goals

45+4' — Ballou Tabla (Atlético Ottawa) (Penalty)
51' — Samuel Salter (Atlético Ottawa)
73' — Gabriel Antinoro (Atlético Ottawa)

***Discipline

57' — Yellow: Loïc Cloutier (Atlético Ottawa)
75' — Yellow: Zachary Fernandez (Valour FC)
90+2' — Yellow: Jordan Faria (Valour FC)