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Posted by
Steve Bottjer,
October 15, 2015 |
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Steve Bottjer
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@BottjerRNO
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After a 10 day break, Toronto FC were back in action on Wednesday night for a home fixture against the New York Red Bulls at BMO Field. With the Reds on the verge of clinching an MLS Cup Playoff spot for the first time in the club’s history, TFC needed only a point to clinch a spot in the postseason.
While Toronto came into this fixture on a three game winning streak, the Reds were going to need to overcome the absence of the team’s three Designated Players if they were going to stretch the win streak to four.
With Sebastian Giovinco, Michael Bradley and Jozy Altidore unable to start after being away on International duty, Collen Warner, Ashtone Morgan and Herculez Gomez took their places in the Toronto starting eleven.
Listen to ESSU:
Giovinco wonder strike sees the Reds into the playoffs
Toronto vs NY Red Bulls
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The Opening 45
With none of their Designated Players playing, Toronto struggled to generate much offensively in the opening half while keeping their shape and defending well.
Toronto’s first scoring chance of the game came in the 24th minute when Justin Morrow was fouled by Red Bulls midfielder Gonzalo Veron a couple of yards outside of the New York box. Herculez Gomez stepped up and delivered a dangerous swinging kick into the box that Damien Perquis just missed getting on the end.
The Reds were hard done by in the 31st minute when Marky Delgado appeared to be pulled down in the New York penalty area, with the official waving play on and denying the home team a penalty kick.
TFC striker Jozy Altidore was so incensed with the missed call that he berated the referee and was ultimately given a red card while sitting on the Toronto bench. While Toronto did not go down to ten men in this match, Altidore likely got himself suspended for at least one game.
Toronto’s luck took a turn for the worse just before half-time when defender Damien Perquis went down with a hamstring injury and had to be replaced by Ahmed Kantari.
The Second Half
Toronto took advantage of a Red Bulls mistake to take the lead in the 51st minute, with New York defender Ronald Zubar making a mess of a cross by Jackson and allowing Herculez Gomez to score his first goal for Toronto FC.
Greg Vanney bolstered the Toronto attack late in the game when Sebastian Giovinco subbed for Herculez Gomez even though he only flew into Toronto from Rome earlier in the day.
That move paid an almost immediate dividend for Toronto, as Giovinco sealed the win on a brilliant individual effort in the 78th minute in which he deked out essentially the entire Reds Bulls team and blasted the ball past keeper Luis Robles.
Despite the majestic insertion of the Atomic Ant, another positive story came in the form of the TFC team defense held the Red Bulls in check for most of the match and closed out the game professionally, with the Toronto back line and defensive midfielders Collen Warner and Benoit Cheyrou combining to engineer a very easy evening for Reds keeper Chris Konopka.
The Red Bulls pulled a goal back in the 86th minute on a top class finish by Shaun Wright-Phillips, but Toronto closed out the game.
Toronto FC should be commended for a solid overall performance against a quality opponent and for delivering under pressure while missing key players. With the win Toronto will not sneak into the playoffs by the back door. Instead the players came through and showed character in clinching their postseason berth via their own winning performance.
Man of the Match
Sebastian Giovinco
It was only appropriate that Toronto’s Man of the Match for the game that delivered their breakthrough victory was Sebastian Giovinco. The Atomic Ant delivered another genuinely stunning goal to seal the victory for Toronto. As the best player ever to wear a Toronto FC kit, the Italian International carried Toronto all season long. On this day his magic was the difference between Toronto and the Red Bulls.
Right back Jackson also delivered a fine, industrious two-way game. The Brazilian speedster set up the opening goal and made a number of key defensive plays to prevent the Reds Bulls from getting back into the match.
Canadian International Jonathan Osorio continued his run of fine form and delivered another excellent performance as the focal point of the Toronto FC attack in the heart of the midfield. He also showed toughness in shaking off a shot to the head and continuing to play a key role for the Reds in the second half.
Toronto FC Line-up
1 Chris Konopka
2 Justin Morrow
24 Damien Perquis
23 Josh Williams
11 Jackson
26 Collen Warner
8 Benoit Cheyrou
21 Jonathan Osorio
18 Marky Delgado
5 Ashtone Morgan
16 Herculez Gomez
Substitutions: Ahmed Kantari for Damien Perquis (44’); Sebastian Giovinco for Herculez Gomez (71’); Eriq Zavaleta for Jonathan Osorio (89’).
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