RECAP + HIGHLIGHTS: Atlético Ottawa vs. Pacific FC | September 05, 2026

Despite playing an entertaining match, Atlético Ottawa and Pacific FC were unable to break each other open, as both teams combined for a 0-0 draw at TD Place on Saturday.

The statistics give an idea of the efforts both teams put in to find a goal: Ottawa generated 1.03 xG on 11 shots, while Pacific had 0.90 xG on 10 shots. In the end, however, the goalkeepers stole the show, finishing with a combined nine saves between them. 

As a result, Ottawa, who entered this weekend in third place in the CPL table, missed the opportunity to potentially narrow the gap between them and second-place Forge to five points - Pacific, meanwhile, were unable to build off their win over the Halifax Wanderers last weekend, which was only their first victory of the CPL season. 

With both coming off big victories in their last match, as Ottawa beat Inter Toronto 2-1 in a thrilling come-from-behind victory, while Pacific beat the Wanderers 4-3 in a comeback of their own, both teams each only made one change apiece to their lineups. 

Ballou Tabla almost had Ottawa ahead inside the first 10 minutes, as he latched onto a nice Gabriel Antinoro pass behind the Pacific backline, but his left-footed shot was denied by an outstanding save from Pacific goalkeeper Sean Melvin. 

At the other end, Yann Toualy had a fantastic chance on a corner in the 25th minute, as he got on the end of a flick from Diego Konincks at the back post, but his first-time shot was punched away by Ottawa goalkeeper Christopher Kalongo. 

Other than that, though, it ended up being a pretty quiet first half, as both teams struggled to break each other down. Of the two teams, Pacific had carried more of the momentum, but that didn't matter, since they didn't have any clear-cut chances to show for it. 

Eager to change that, Pacific came out with new intent in the second half, as they pushed for the opening goal.

 Just minutes into the half, Ronan Kratt teed up Marco Bustos for a dangerous cutback after a good run in behind, but not only was Bustos denied by Kalongo with a great save, Kratt was ultimately ruled offside anyways, denying Pacific the ensuing corner. 

Then, in the 49th minute, Kratt decided to have a shot of his own, as he fired a left-footed strike after a nice give-and-go with Kadin Chung, only finding himself denied a goal by the crossbar after beating Kalongo with his shot. 

Continuing his strong start to the half, Kratt helped create his team's best chance of the game in the 58th minute, teeing up Bustos with a squared pass across the box, but despite being unmarked just feet away from the goal, Bustos hit his first-time shot right at Kalongo. Moments later, Kratt had another chance of his own, but his attempt was cleared by a nice sliding challenge from Ottawa's Loïc Cloutier. 

Wanting to recapture any sort of momentum, Ottawa nearly found a goal in the 62nd minute, as Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau snuck behind Melvin after a long ball, but he was unable to get a shot off after a physical challenge from Pacific's Diego Konincks, who did well to protect his team's empty net. 

Meanwhile, Pacific had another good chance in the 78th minute, as Alejandro Díaz, who had just come onto the field, latched onto a nice Mathias Vales pass and fired it towards goal, forcing an uncomfortable save out of Kalongo.

Having made a habit of scoring late goals in recent matches, Ottawa nearly found another one in the 84th minute on a wide free-kick. Fittingly, the ball found the right player in Fleuriau Chateau, too, who has been in excellent form as of late, but he sent his powerful header right into the hands of Melvin. 

Moments later, Tabla had a header of his own on a corner, but while his shot would beat Melvin, Pacific's Kadin Chung did well to get a head to keep it out with a nice goal-line block, before Manny Aparicio would send a shot into the hands of Melvin on the next phase of play. 

In the end, those would be the last good chances for either team, as both sides struggled to generate any further opportunities despite there being eight minutes of added time. 

As a result, they were left to settle for a draw, one that feels fair given the circumstances, even if both teams will feel unlucky not to have found the net at all when seeing some of the chances they created for themselves. In the end, a lack of cutting edge in the box, as well as two strong showings from both goalkeepers, ended up being the story of the match.

Box Score

Starting XIs

Atlético Ottawa: Kalongo; Assi (Gutiérrez 56'), Dunn, Cloutier, Aguilar (Castro 56'); Aparicio, Arnuad (Abatneh 84'); Habibullah (Coulanges 56'), Tabla, Antinoro (García 84'); Fleuriau Chateau

Pacific FC: Melvin; Chung, Quintana, Konincks, Greco-Taylor; Juhmi, Browning Lagerfeldt (Heard 68'); Bustos (Hundal 75'), Daniels (Vales 68'), Toualy (Marshall 84'); Kratt (Díaz 75')

Goals

N/A

Discipline

41 - Yellow: Juan Quintana (Pacific FC)

45+2' - Yellow: Christian Greco-Taylor (Pacific FC)

65' - Yellow: Tim Arnaud (Atlético Ottawa)

79' - Yellow: Loïc Cloutier (Atlético Ottawa)

CPLSoccer.com Player of the Match

Juan Quintana, Pacific FC

Quintana was a hive of defensive activity, finishing with a game-high 12 defensive contributions, including six tackles, four clearances and two interceptions. He also added six recoveries and won nine out of 14 duels to cap off his strong defensive showing, while also completing 50 out of 54 passes in possession. 

What's Next?

Ottawa will head out on the road for their next match, as a trip to Hamilton to take on Forge FC at Hamilton Stadium awaits them on Saturday, September 12th (7:00 p.m. ET). Pacific, meanwhile, will head to Toronto to take on Inter Toronto at York Lions Stadium in a midweek clash on Wednesday, September 9th (4:30 p.m. PT/7:30 p.m. ET), before returning home to take on Cavalry at Starlight Stadium on Sunday, September 13th (3:00 p.m. PT/4:00 p.m. MT).