Deossa, Cortizo lead CF Monterrey victory at Forge FC | OneFootball

HAMILTON, Canada – CF Monterrey earned a 2-nil victory against Forge FC in the first leg of their Round One series as the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup continued on Wednesday at Hamilton Stadium in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

The hosts had an early opportunity to open the scoring in the 13’, but a save from Monterrey goalkeeper Luis Cárdenas denied a right-footed attempt from David Choiniere.

Roberto de la Rosa had a dangerous look for the visitors in the 27’, with a strike from outside the box that was just wide of the woodwork.

Rayados found the breakthrough goal in the 53’ through Nelson Deossa, coming from a left-footed drive from outside the box.

Jordi Cortizo extended the lead for Monterrey in the 66’ with a sublime free kick after being substituted one minute prior. The last Rayados player to score off the bench in the Concacaf Champions Cup was Brandon Vázquez, against Comunicaciones in February 2024.

The last two Concacaf Champions Cup matches in which a team scored twice from outside the box have involved Monterrey: tonight, they got both of their goals from outside the box, while in 2024, they conceded both from outside the box in a 2-1 defeat against Columbus Crew.

Forge came close to shortening the deficit in the 83’, but the home side’s attackers couldn’t capitalize on great team play and dangerous delivery into the box.

Cárdenas stood out in goal on the night, registering three saves and collecting his first clean sheet of the campaign.

This is the first match in their Concacaf Champions Cup history that Forge had more possession than their rivals (52.6%). In the four previous matches in the competition, the Canadians averaged 41.5% possession.

Monterrey attempted 19 shots tonight, their second-highest tally as a visitor in the Concacaf Champions Cup since 2019. The only match in which Rayados attempted more shots as the away team since that edition was against Inter Miami in 2024 (21).

By scoring against Forge FC, Rayados extended its streak to 20 consecutive games with a goal in the Concacaf Champions Cup, the longest active run in the competition (16-2-2).

The two clubs will meet again next Wednesday in Mexico for their second-leg match. The aggregate winner will advance to the Round of 16.