Atlético Ottawa are back in the win column in the Canadian Premier League after a 1-0 victory over Halifax.

Jonantán Villal got his first goal for the club in the 30th minute, firing past Marco Carducci.

The hosts had to improvise at the back, deploying Daniel Aguilar as the left-sided centre-back alongside Noah Abatneh and Rony Mbomio. Manny Aparicio and Juan Castro formed the double pivot as usual, with Jean-Aniel Assi and Gabriel Antinoro on the wings. Jonantán Villal and Ballou Tabla played underneath Emiliano García, who led the line as the number nine.

Halifax lined up in a 4-4-2, with Marcus Godinho, Kareem Sow, Finn Linder, and Jefferson Alphonso forming the back four. Jason Bahamboula, Lorenzo Callegari, Sven Zitman, and Isaiah Johnston made up the midfield line, with Cyprian Kachwele and Ryan Telfer up top.

Kachwele found himself on the end of a fine pass from Telfer in the opening minutes, and before he could adjust into a shooting position, he accidentally touched the ball with his other foot, sending it out for a goal kick before he even had the chance to pull the trigger.

There is a saying that goals not scored at one end are scored at the other, and it rang true 15 minutes later when Jonantán Villal received the ball in the box, made a sharp turn, and fired to the far side, where Carducci had no chance, putting Atlético Ottawa ahead in the capital. It was the youngster's first goal for his new club.

GOAL 🦖

Jonantán Villal gets his first for @atletiOttawa as the hosts take the lead 😎

🔴 Watch #CPLSoccer on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/Q8yFjkKLqj

— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) May 17, 2026

Halifax rarely threatened, often keeping the ball for long spells without doing much with it. Ottawa, too, failed to generate much going forward until the final minutes saw the game open up.

Gabriel Antinoro sent a half-shot, half-cross across the box, but nobody got on the end of it, and the ball went wide. The Wanderers then had a glorious accidental chance when Daniel Aguilar's attempted clearance landed in the middle of the box, leaving Victor Akinwale with a free header into a wide-open net, only for the ball to strike the post.

How have the @HFXWanderersFC not scored here 😱

🔴 Watch #CPLSoccer on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/igGrakdALR

— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) May 17, 2026

The hosts survived the late scare and took all three points.

Ottawa move up to fourth, above FC Supra though with an extra game played, while Halifax extend their winless streak across all competitions to six matches, having last won on the opening day of the CPL season on April 4.

Up next for the hosts is another home clash on Sunday, May 24, this time against an undefeated Forge at 2:00 pm ET / 11:00 am PT, while Halifax host Inter Toronto the day before at 4:00 pm AT / 3:00 pm ET.