“He whistled for a penalty and then he was influenced by the fourth official who said he didn't think it was,” Schallibaum said following the game. “For me it's a scandal because a decision was made and then all of a sudden it's not a penalty. It was something that changed the game even though we did not play a strong first half and we were unlucky on the penalty to Hassoun.”

The fat lady hasn't sung yet but the Montreal Impact might be hearing someone practising scales backstage after dropping a 3-0 decision to the San Jose Earthquakes in CONCACAF Group 5 play in front of a sparse crowd at Buck Shaw Stadium.

“There wasn’t a lot missing today,” he continued. “A centimetre’s difference here or there and things might have been different but the game's like that. Even though we came away empty-handed today we are still on track to achieve the objectives we set at the beginning of the season.”

For the consipracy theorists out there who think that MLS has it in for Impact coach Marco Schallibaum, Friday’s news will add fuel to the fire.

This time, ,ot only did Schallibaum get an extra game, he received a $5,000 fine. Now, remember that in MLS, fines are usually measured in the hundreds of dollars. By MLS standards, a $5,000 penalty is a whopper.

“We know that Marco and Felipe have been going through a bit of a rough spell. We were lucky that Marco made the difference tonight with his two goals. Overall, I think that we played very well,” said Schallibaum. “We applied immense pressure on the sides with Justin (Mapp) and Romero. We were very much at ease both offensively and defensively too. D.C. plays an intelligent game and is a tough team to play.”

Challenging to the very end, Montreal’s last attempt came on a set play in the third of four minutes of added time. Romero’s cross sailed into the six-metre box and was met by Matteo Ferrari. The Italian central defender headed it towards the inside of the near post, picking a spot that was defended by five-foot-eight, 146-pound Rolfe rather than Johnson, a six-foot-three, 217-pounder.

“It was a happy ending,” offered head coach Marco Schallibaum, who managed to remain on the sidelines for the entire game rather than making an early exit as he has in both games against SKC played earlier in the schedule. “When you change someone to bring on fresh legs and the guy you send on gets the goal, there’s a bit of luck involved. We deserved it because we dominated the second half and managed to defeat the team that, I think, is, at the moment, the best team in MLS.”

“When you dominate the whole match the way we did and you don’t win it hurts a bit,” he admitted. “But our level of performance was very high tonight Justin and Sanna were on fire all game and I think both wingers are pretty tired tonight because they were going for the goal all game long."

“We’re going through a bit of a tough phase at the moment. There’s a lot of physical fatigue and a bit of mental fatigue as well. It’s a long season and you have to expect some periods like the one we’re going through but we have to stay the course and play through them,” said Camara.