The back to back victories over the Chicago Fire have given TFC fans reason for optimism for the months ahead. TFC looked like formidable defending champions Saturday night (July 28). A great way to end the month of July, considering how ineffective they looked losing 0-1 to NYRB to begin the month and how few the points they gained in July. Put aside the Chicago games (and the Ottawa Fury games in a different competition) and Toronto gained a single point from the 4 earlier July MLS games. Seems that the Chicago Fire were just what the TFC doctor ordered. The quality of the opponent is less than a tenth of the story, the continued return to health of injured players remains factor #1.
The first half was all muscle, tussle and half scoring chances for TFC. Bastien Schweinsteiger, Chicago star and German footballing legend, played way back as a Fire defender in the first half. He was effective, but I don't think he gets full credit for the 0-0 score at half time. You felt that Chicago was still in a game that they did not deserve to be in. Yes, that TFC feeling was washing over me at that point. Damn, one bad bounce, one lucky shot and the Fire could put TFC under pressure.
Credit to Greg Vanney for the halftime change. Ashtone Morgan came out of the game, he was playing ok, but a left foot on the right wing has never been his spot on the field. On came Marky Delgado. TFC shifted to a 4-4-2. Vazquez in a central role, with Bradley in behind him in a diamond midfield.
The change in alignment might have been a spark to the greater attack spirit of the second half. Not that it was obvious for the first goal, a scramble that could have come from any formation. I thought that you had to also give great credit to van der Wiel, Mavinga and Zavaletta, the ball was always being played well from the back. Your midfield can supply your strikers with better through balls when they themselves are getting quality situations determined by the defenders. Osorio, Vazquez, Bradley and Delgado were all benefitting. I am cheering for Marky Delgado to rebuild his confidence. I still think he retreats and passes back out of situations that would benefit from him taking on defenders. Their does not have to be a clear path, move into space, draw a foul, bounce the ball off a shin to get a throw in.
I will blog about the month ahead rather than the game ahead this week.
Keep cheering, thanks for reading...
Sunday, July 29, 2018
Thursday, July 26, 2018
TFC quell the Fury TFC 3 Ottawa Fury FC (USL) 0
A balmy summer's night at BMO. The evening sky at sunset may have taken our gaze away from the game from time to time.
This part of the world can be a beautiful place.
TFC never looked worried.
It is so difficult to evaluate young players when they are playing against lower level teams, yet I thought that Liam Fraser played a strong game. I was willing to put aside his strengths on the ball as a case of the other team not pressing enough, but his tackling and ball winning in the midfield impressed me.
To those who fail to admire Marky Delgado, last night was an example of his strengths. He was a large part of why TFC was never worried. The angle of his tracking back, always pushing Ottawa wide, always cutting off passing lanes, was excellent. I can't deny that defending and ball winning is made easier when TFC are playing Morrow and Mavinga.
We now know that the Canadian Championship final opponent will be the Vancouver Whitecaps. It will be a step up in intensity from last night's walk in the park.
Bring them on....
This part of the world can be a beautiful place.
TFC never looked worried.
It is so difficult to evaluate young players when they are playing against lower level teams, yet I thought that Liam Fraser played a strong game. I was willing to put aside his strengths on the ball as a case of the other team not pressing enough, but his tackling and ball winning in the midfield impressed me.
To those who fail to admire Marky Delgado, last night was an example of his strengths. He was a large part of why TFC was never worried. The angle of his tracking back, always pushing Ottawa wide, always cutting off passing lanes, was excellent. I can't deny that defending and ball winning is made easier when TFC are playing Morrow and Mavinga.
We now know that the Canadian Championship final opponent will be the Vancouver Whitecaps. It will be a step up in intensity from last night's walk in the park.
Bring them on....
Sunday, July 22, 2018
Road victory leads to summer's first flicker of hope - Chicago Fire 1 Toronto FC 2
Apologies for not blogging during these recent weeks.
My excuse is both travel and World Cup 2018 intertwined.
I travelled to Los Angeles to visit my uncle. He and I have a tradition of watching games together that goes way back (even includes attending a USA1994 Netherlands/Brazil classic in Dallas).
Then I travelled to Iceland with my wife, some of her siblings and their spouses in early July. I had warned all that my availability for lava fields and waterfalls was determined by the World Cup schedule. It was my fond hope that I would get to see Iceland play a knockout round game from Iceland. I dared not hope that England would still be on the stage.
Both my LA trip and my Iceland trip will be the subjects of future blog posts. Just for the record.
For now, let's talk TFC.
They have been so hard to watch. I counted myself fortunate to have missed the goal fest loss to Minnesota and even the draw on the road in Kansas City. Between my travels I had witnessed the 0-1 loss to New York on Canada Day at BMO. I knew that the huge injury list was a constant factor, but frustration was always increasing at the lack of players rising to take advantage of their opportunities. I was home from my travels in time to see TFC on tv lose to Orlando City. I did not blog. Just too jet lagged, tired, annoyed, mad and frustrated.
You might be as tired as I am of hearing that a TFC MLS game was a must game for turning the season around. Too, too many times has that label thrown around and I am sure that it has been contributing to this anger and frustration.
Last night in Chicago, I hope, the tide turned.
TFC attacked from the wings, moved the ball well down the middle, controlled the tempo of the game, shut down the Fire often and welcomed back more players from the injury list (notably Jozy Altidore, Chris Mavinga and Gregory van der Wiel, with Victor Vazquez available off the bench). They looked more capable, more cohesive than they have in months. Oso, Delgado and Bradley all had solid games. The Delgado tackle which lead to Bradley's long diagonal pass which put Giovinco into dangerous territory were all ingredients of that great first goal. Osorio scoring the winner was just another chapter of his storybook season. Yes, Altidore makes the attack smarter, better, more creative, more ambitious.
As players shed injury comeback rust and TFC still welcomes back Drew Moor and Auro Jr. AND the possibility that TFC have summer window moves still to make, the months ahead might turn this hope flicker into a flame. I am hopeful for a bonfire come September and October.
thanks for reading....
My excuse is both travel and World Cup 2018 intertwined.
I travelled to Los Angeles to visit my uncle. He and I have a tradition of watching games together that goes way back (even includes attending a USA1994 Netherlands/Brazil classic in Dallas).
Then I travelled to Iceland with my wife, some of her siblings and their spouses in early July. I had warned all that my availability for lava fields and waterfalls was determined by the World Cup schedule. It was my fond hope that I would get to see Iceland play a knockout round game from Iceland. I dared not hope that England would still be on the stage.
Both my LA trip and my Iceland trip will be the subjects of future blog posts. Just for the record.
For now, let's talk TFC.
They have been so hard to watch. I counted myself fortunate to have missed the goal fest loss to Minnesota and even the draw on the road in Kansas City. Between my travels I had witnessed the 0-1 loss to New York on Canada Day at BMO. I knew that the huge injury list was a constant factor, but frustration was always increasing at the lack of players rising to take advantage of their opportunities. I was home from my travels in time to see TFC on tv lose to Orlando City. I did not blog. Just too jet lagged, tired, annoyed, mad and frustrated.
You might be as tired as I am of hearing that a TFC MLS game was a must game for turning the season around. Too, too many times has that label thrown around and I am sure that it has been contributing to this anger and frustration.
Last night in Chicago, I hope, the tide turned.
TFC attacked from the wings, moved the ball well down the middle, controlled the tempo of the game, shut down the Fire often and welcomed back more players from the injury list (notably Jozy Altidore, Chris Mavinga and Gregory van der Wiel, with Victor Vazquez available off the bench). They looked more capable, more cohesive than they have in months. Oso, Delgado and Bradley all had solid games. The Delgado tackle which lead to Bradley's long diagonal pass which put Giovinco into dangerous territory were all ingredients of that great first goal. Osorio scoring the winner was just another chapter of his storybook season. Yes, Altidore makes the attack smarter, better, more creative, more ambitious.
As players shed injury comeback rust and TFC still welcomes back Drew Moor and Auro Jr. AND the possibility that TFC have summer window moves still to make, the months ahead might turn this hope flicker into a flame. I am hopeful for a bonfire come September and October.
thanks for reading....
Thursday, June 14, 2018
Not a pretty picture TFC 4 DC United 4
(Quickly now) I throw together a bloglet of my thoughts from last night's game with DC United. The World Cup Russia 2018 is about to hit all of us with a tidal wave of games, so I write hurriedly while watching game 1 Russia v Saudi Arabia...
I am still struggling to come towards some grasp of what happened.
Yes, it is possible that TFC felt that DC United were a struggling team and therefore all Toronto had to do was show up and waltz through the game.
Yes, it is possible that the wrong defensive alignment was part of the woeful TFC first half. We could blame the wind. Too many times this season we have seen other teams cut through the Toronto backline like a hot knife through butter. The Zavaletta / Hagglund combo just seems to invite fast attackers to let loose. A healthy Chris Mavinga is required. It was great to see a healthy Justin Morrow get second half playing time. A return to Morrow and Mavinga down the left side and the new combo of Auro Jr and van der Wiel on the right will calm the defensive waters. Question still remains about the central roles.
My big concern is a lack of attacking play in the middle of the pitch. It was true of the first half than the second half last night, but it has been a concern. It seems that the book on defending against TFC is allow the ball to stay wide and crowd the middle. Osorio, Vazquez and Giovinco had trouble moving forward in central traffic. It seems that combination short passes too often go astray and giveaways abound. Ricketts is not the right sort of player for weaving passes and dribbles. Marky Delgado has vanished from the bench and Ager Aketxe does not get the call from the bench.
So a point was gained when TFC was down 0-3. If the Columbus Crew comeback was a negative for TFC fans, then one has to grant credit to the comeback effort. The standings still look grim for playoff purposes.
Let the World Cup distract all and a fresher TFC greet us come Canada Day.
I am still struggling to come towards some grasp of what happened.
Yes, it is possible that TFC felt that DC United were a struggling team and therefore all Toronto had to do was show up and waltz through the game.
Yes, it is possible that the wrong defensive alignment was part of the woeful TFC first half. We could blame the wind. Too many times this season we have seen other teams cut through the Toronto backline like a hot knife through butter. The Zavaletta / Hagglund combo just seems to invite fast attackers to let loose. A healthy Chris Mavinga is required. It was great to see a healthy Justin Morrow get second half playing time. A return to Morrow and Mavinga down the left side and the new combo of Auro Jr and van der Wiel on the right will calm the defensive waters. Question still remains about the central roles.
My big concern is a lack of attacking play in the middle of the pitch. It was true of the first half than the second half last night, but it has been a concern. It seems that the book on defending against TFC is allow the ball to stay wide and crowd the middle. Osorio, Vazquez and Giovinco had trouble moving forward in central traffic. It seems that combination short passes too often go astray and giveaways abound. Ricketts is not the right sort of player for weaving passes and dribbles. Marky Delgado has vanished from the bench and Ager Aketxe does not get the call from the bench.
So a point was gained when TFC was down 0-3. If the Columbus Crew comeback was a negative for TFC fans, then one has to grant credit to the comeback effort. The standings still look grim for playoff purposes.
Let the World Cup distract all and a fresher TFC greet us come Canada Day.
Saturday, June 9, 2018
Road victory Philly Union 0 TFC 2
TFC grabbed their first road victory of the 2018 season. Ok, it was a week late. It should have been that disaster in Columbus last Saturday night.
Jonathan Osorio was the scoring star with a goal in each half. Alex Bono made the timely saves that I had felt he had been lacking of late. He also had the spectacular fortune to have Philly's best shot go off the crossbar.
The back two pairing of Hernandez and Hagglund had a few clunky moments. TFC needs to develop Drew Moor's future replacement. Perhaps it is Hagglund, or Mavinga. I should not be squawking about defending after a game with a clean sheet. Can we play the Union every week?
It was also good to see Agar Aketxe get into the game and play some productive minutes. He needs playing time and a chance to learn the league. It seems that the TFC midfield has both established roles and unsettled ones. Osorio has grabbed his role, Auro Jr has the right flank and we expect a healthy Justin Morrow gets back to the left. Bradley as DM and then a mixture of Aketxe, Fraser, Telfer, Hasler and the Marky Delgado comeback? It almost helps that Victor Vazquez gets his spot as striker.
I am throwing the cat amongst the pigeons here.
The time to sell Seba Giovinco (in my so subtle opinion) is sooner rather than later.
He has lost a step, does not beat anyone 1v1. Philly is hardly a lockdown defending team, but Seba was smothered. The second goal (his assist on Osorio) was a gift, Philly threw the ball to him wide open.
He is also not showing any maturity, coolness or leadership. After the contact to his face in the second half, he did not get his head back in the game for minutes. If Toledo did not give him a yellow card on his payback tackle, we are in strange territory. Toledo more restrained than our striker. He is not earning a pay raise out there.
Sure, the return of Altidore, Morrow, Mavinga and Moor will make a huge difference to this team. My opinion is that Giovinco has not expanded to fill the leadership vacuum
Maybe a loan during the offseason? That would be a way to establish whether he has value and reveal to him that if he wants a future in Toronto, it has to be on Toronto's terms. Maybe a contract offer that allows TFC to sign another striker?
Jonathan Osorio was the scoring star with a goal in each half. Alex Bono made the timely saves that I had felt he had been lacking of late. He also had the spectacular fortune to have Philly's best shot go off the crossbar.
The back two pairing of Hernandez and Hagglund had a few clunky moments. TFC needs to develop Drew Moor's future replacement. Perhaps it is Hagglund, or Mavinga. I should not be squawking about defending after a game with a clean sheet. Can we play the Union every week?
It was also good to see Agar Aketxe get into the game and play some productive minutes. He needs playing time and a chance to learn the league. It seems that the TFC midfield has both established roles and unsettled ones. Osorio has grabbed his role, Auro Jr has the right flank and we expect a healthy Justin Morrow gets back to the left. Bradley as DM and then a mixture of Aketxe, Fraser, Telfer, Hasler and the Marky Delgado comeback? It almost helps that Victor Vazquez gets his spot as striker.
I am throwing the cat amongst the pigeons here.
The time to sell Seba Giovinco (in my so subtle opinion) is sooner rather than later.
He has lost a step, does not beat anyone 1v1. Philly is hardly a lockdown defending team, but Seba was smothered. The second goal (his assist on Osorio) was a gift, Philly threw the ball to him wide open.
He is also not showing any maturity, coolness or leadership. After the contact to his face in the second half, he did not get his head back in the game for minutes. If Toledo did not give him a yellow card on his payback tackle, we are in strange territory. Toledo more restrained than our striker. He is not earning a pay raise out there.
Sure, the return of Altidore, Morrow, Mavinga and Moor will make a huge difference to this team. My opinion is that Giovinco has not expanded to fill the leadership vacuum
Maybe a loan during the offseason? That would be a way to establish whether he has value and reveal to him that if he wants a future in Toronto, it has to be on Toronto's terms. Maybe a contract offer that allows TFC to sign another striker?
 |
| Healthy Hagglund Helps |
Sunday, June 3, 2018
Crewsing along, wheels fell off Columbus 3 TFC 3
I waited until the morning after before writing the blog post. I would have been spitting fire from the keyboard. Instead I devoted my energy to yapping on Facebook and Twitter.
It hurt to watch TFC on television squander a 3 goal lead on the road.
It hurt to watch Michael Bradley make some questionable decisions on the ball in critical moments.
It hurts to see Marky Delgado, in only a short time playing as a late substitute, play without confidence and give away the ball.
It hurts to see another team get into Alex Bono's head and have him not make timely saves that were such a huge part of 2017 glory.
I know that TFC injury list continues to be a factor. TFC are missing Jozy Altidore, Justin Morrow, Drew Moor, Chris Mavinga and many more and that the vacancies are huge. Osorio had to leave the game early due to injury.
I chirp about this too often, but TFC still lacks a character guy. A replacement for Benoit Cheyrou and/or Steven Beitashour. Somebody who knows the league, teams and stadiums. Somebody who comes into the game in the late stages and calms the troops, quells the storm, makes the contributions required. Liam Fraser, the TFC rookie midfielder, played a solid first 60 minutes. He and Ryan Telfer have shown plenty of potential, but they are the sort of players who get replaced in the final 20 minutes by a character guy.
TFC need a winning streak. Defeat Philly, DC and NYCFC and I can see myself at the Canada Day game with a renewed sense of hope. But, as I said on twitter last night, it will take months before I gradually, grudgingly take consolation in last night's point on the road.
It hurt to watch TFC on television squander a 3 goal lead on the road.
It hurt to watch Michael Bradley make some questionable decisions on the ball in critical moments.
It hurts to see Marky Delgado, in only a short time playing as a late substitute, play without confidence and give away the ball.
It hurts to see another team get into Alex Bono's head and have him not make timely saves that were such a huge part of 2017 glory.
I know that TFC injury list continues to be a factor. TFC are missing Jozy Altidore, Justin Morrow, Drew Moor, Chris Mavinga and many more and that the vacancies are huge. Osorio had to leave the game early due to injury.
I chirp about this too often, but TFC still lacks a character guy. A replacement for Benoit Cheyrou and/or Steven Beitashour. Somebody who knows the league, teams and stadiums. Somebody who comes into the game in the late stages and calms the troops, quells the storm, makes the contributions required. Liam Fraser, the TFC rookie midfielder, played a solid first 60 minutes. He and Ryan Telfer have shown plenty of potential, but they are the sort of players who get replaced in the final 20 minutes by a character guy.
TFC need a winning streak. Defeat Philly, DC and NYCFC and I can see myself at the Canada Day game with a renewed sense of hope. But, as I said on twitter last night, it will take months before I gradually, grudgingly take consolation in last night's point on the road.
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| to add insult to injury, each of these guys scored last night... |
Saturday, May 26, 2018
No goals, no spine, no spit, no fire TFC 0 FCDallas flipfloppin 1
I write on the morning after... my ire slightly cooled. Slightly...
I understand that TFC faces a huge challenge to duplicate or even come close to their wonder season of 2017.
I understand that TFC have had that huge challenge multiplied by the early season demands of playing in the CCL. They were a penalty kick or two, a penalty save or two away from winning the Champion's League.
I understand that TFC have a continuing injury problem - Moor, Morrow, Altidore are the biggest names that come to mind, but plenty more. Chris Mavinga went off injured last night, so it continues.
But for heaven's sake, what the hell is happening here? What are we witnessing? This has suddenly (or over the course of April and May home games) become a team with no sting AND no spine.
Toronto does not have the ability to score and honestly I am not surprised. The offensive strategy is to feed it to Giovinco and hope he scores a miracle goal or shuffle the ball around and mostly stand still.
Has Michael Bradley signed a pledge to never, ever take a shot at net? Victor Vazquez played a substandard game as did Osorio. Ryan Telfer and Liam Fraser both contributed, but having those two rookies be your top two passing and crossing contributors means there are a lot of passengers around them.
I honestly want a month or two break from watching Hamilton and/or Ricketts have limited impact on play. It is a good thing that the June schedule puts TFC on the road most of the time. I feel that TFC needs a striker for a summer signing and possibly a trade to just send a message. No score = not needed.
As to the spit and spine lacking.... it started with the Seba Giovinco pk. Before the shot was taken the Dallas keeper Gonzalez was allowed to stand toe to toe with the penalty taker. Ref? Should have been the first question and if seconds later no action EVERY TFC player should have been in there. I have never seen a keeper be allowed to mess with a penalty taker that way. He proceeded to stall and go back in stages.
The best move of the night was that Ryan Telfer fouled the keeper and earned a yellow first chance he got. Did you notice that the Dallas players all massed around their keeper to protect him after the contact?
The second half was a drama fest. TFC had fewer and fewer attacking ideas and Dallas had fewer and fewer players able to keep to their feet. We saw this type of crap from Colorado last summer and TFC get out their nice guy attitudes and end up with their faces rubbed in it.
Auro Jr caught a Dallas player in the corner below me shinguard to shinguard and the Dallas player went down like he had been amputated. Drew the foul and then did the miracle recovery. Nobody went over and fouled the bugger right then and there. Hey ref he faked it over there.....but, oh look by god damn, he is injured now. Tell the Dallas players stay on your feet and play, you are in Toronto. Hurt somebody, stand up to their tactics, BE LESS THAN NICE. Show some spit, some spine, some fire. Show something other than dither, pass back and hope that static offense is going to magically have the other team falter. If you can’t win pretty WIN UGLY. Arghhhhhh
Nice works when you win, nice works when you score. TFC are faltering and folding and fading. Too many players are in a fuzzy funk. God, we miss Benoit Cheyrou.
Bezbatchenko has to step in with a summer trade and a signing. Vanney and Fraser have to smarten up and either find the offensive, creative spark or pray daily for a healthy return of Morrow and Altidore. Or hire an offensive specialist coach. Or just somebody who loses their temper from time to time. I am available, up in section 220. You will spot me easily, the guy with the steam rising from his cranium.
It is almost unimaginable in recent memory to see a visiting team arrive with the notion that scoring a single goal was enough to defeat TFC in Toronto. Unimaginable.
I understand that TFC faces a huge challenge to duplicate or even come close to their wonder season of 2017.
I understand that TFC have had that huge challenge multiplied by the early season demands of playing in the CCL. They were a penalty kick or two, a penalty save or two away from winning the Champion's League.
I understand that TFC have a continuing injury problem - Moor, Morrow, Altidore are the biggest names that come to mind, but plenty more. Chris Mavinga went off injured last night, so it continues.
But for heaven's sake, what the hell is happening here? What are we witnessing? This has suddenly (or over the course of April and May home games) become a team with no sting AND no spine.
Toronto does not have the ability to score and honestly I am not surprised. The offensive strategy is to feed it to Giovinco and hope he scores a miracle goal or shuffle the ball around and mostly stand still.
Has Michael Bradley signed a pledge to never, ever take a shot at net? Victor Vazquez played a substandard game as did Osorio. Ryan Telfer and Liam Fraser both contributed, but having those two rookies be your top two passing and crossing contributors means there are a lot of passengers around them.
I honestly want a month or two break from watching Hamilton and/or Ricketts have limited impact on play. It is a good thing that the June schedule puts TFC on the road most of the time. I feel that TFC needs a striker for a summer signing and possibly a trade to just send a message. No score = not needed.
As to the spit and spine lacking.... it started with the Seba Giovinco pk. Before the shot was taken the Dallas keeper Gonzalez was allowed to stand toe to toe with the penalty taker. Ref? Should have been the first question and if seconds later no action EVERY TFC player should have been in there. I have never seen a keeper be allowed to mess with a penalty taker that way. He proceeded to stall and go back in stages.
The best move of the night was that Ryan Telfer fouled the keeper and earned a yellow first chance he got. Did you notice that the Dallas players all massed around their keeper to protect him after the contact?
The second half was a drama fest. TFC had fewer and fewer attacking ideas and Dallas had fewer and fewer players able to keep to their feet. We saw this type of crap from Colorado last summer and TFC get out their nice guy attitudes and end up with their faces rubbed in it.
Auro Jr caught a Dallas player in the corner below me shinguard to shinguard and the Dallas player went down like he had been amputated. Drew the foul and then did the miracle recovery. Nobody went over and fouled the bugger right then and there. Hey ref he faked it over there.....but, oh look by god damn, he is injured now. Tell the Dallas players stay on your feet and play, you are in Toronto. Hurt somebody, stand up to their tactics, BE LESS THAN NICE. Show some spit, some spine, some fire. Show something other than dither, pass back and hope that static offense is going to magically have the other team falter. If you can’t win pretty WIN UGLY. Arghhhhhh
Nice works when you win, nice works when you score. TFC are faltering and folding and fading. Too many players are in a fuzzy funk. God, we miss Benoit Cheyrou.
Bezbatchenko has to step in with a summer trade and a signing. Vanney and Fraser have to smarten up and either find the offensive, creative spark or pray daily for a healthy return of Morrow and Altidore. Or hire an offensive specialist coach. Or just somebody who loses their temper from time to time. I am available, up in section 220. You will spot me easily, the guy with the steam rising from his cranium.
It is almost unimaginable in recent memory to see a visiting team arrive with the notion that scoring a single goal was enough to defeat TFC in Toronto. Unimaginable.
 |
| Early in game, before steam overload |
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