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After a convincing victory over Montreal on Wednesday, Toronto FC returned to action at home against D.C. United.
Toronto (7-6-1) entered the game hot as of late, winners of four out of the past five and in 4th place in a competitive Eastern Conference.
Manager Greg Vanney opted for the same 4-4-2 ‘diamond midfield’ formation he deployed against Montreal, with only Ashtone Morgan drawing in for Warren Creavalle..
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The Opening 45
Toronto started the match the stronger side and looked more threatening from the opening whistle.
Sebastian Giovinco blasted a stinging shot from the top of the left-box in the 5th minute, but the Italian saw his strike punched aside by D.C.’s keeper Bill Hamid.
The Reds came close again in the 29th minute when Jozy Altidore headed over the bar following a Giovinco cross.
Just minutes later Toronto was nearly caught on a counterattack, however TFC keeper Chris Konopka was up to the task in making a strong save on Luis Silva’s shot from distance.
As the game approached halftime, Jonathan Osorio’s left-footed strike narrowly missed the near post after the Canadian made a nice feint to find some space.
Toronto survived a bit of a scare mid-way through the first half when Giovinco went down after he appeared to be clipped on the back of his ankle, but the striker remained in the game.
The Second Half
The second half picked up right where the first left off, with Toronto owning the majority of possession but struggling to create a decisive scoring chance.
Giovinco continued attacking the final third, cutting in nicely from his run down the left flank in the 63nd minute before taking a shot that sailed over Hamid’s goal.
Minutes later, it was Giovinco again who forced a strong diving save from Hamid after firing a low shot to the far left post.
The Reds drew close one more time in the 76th minute off of some nice build up play between Michael Bradley and Gionvico, but once more Hamid was able to palm away the Italian’s strike.
As the final minutes ticked away, TFC continued to push forward but were unable to find a winning goal.
Toronto now face a tough four game stretch, as they will be without the services of Bradley, Altidore, Osorio and Morgan, who will all be participating in the Gold Cup from July 7-26.
Man of the Match
Sebastian Giovinco
Giovinco and “Man of the Match” are starting to become the norm for Toronto FC games, but the diminutive forward was once again brilliant in creating at least a half a dozen scoring chances. Unfortunately for Toronto, Seba was unable to find the back of the net on Saturday afternoon, but was once again the strongest player on the field for the Reds.
Honourable Mention
Michael Bradley was his usual dependable self for Toronto, as the midfielder was at the heart of nearly every attack and made several intelligent and composed decisions on the ball.
Chris Konopka was also solid for the Reds, making a couple of quality stops when called upon.
Toronto FC Line-up
(4-4-2)
1 Chris Konopka
5 Ashtone Morgan
15 Eriq Zavaleta
24 Damien Perquis
2 Justin Morrow
26 Collen Warner
21 Jonathan Osorio
18 Marky Delgado
4 Michael Bradley
10 Sebastian Giovinco
17 Jozy Altidore
Substitutions: Robbie Findley for Jozy Altidore (71), Jay Chapman for Jonathan Osorio (78), Jackson for Marky Delgado (82).
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