At Least it was Exciting

I have come up with a new moto for Toronto FC.  It is that if you can't be good you should at least be exciting.  They lived up to that moto against DC United in what had to be one of the most exciting games in recent memory.  The game was a 3-3 draw in the end but along the way to that final scoreline there were talking points left right and centre. 

The game kicked off with DC United's keeper being sent off in the 7th minute thanks to a nasty two legged tackle that sent Avila flipping through the air.  After chatting with his assistant the ref decided that the right move was to send Hamid for a very early shower, if he even needed one after only 7 minutes played, and I think it was the correct move.  Watching the game I knew that things were only going to get more lively from there.  The stage was set for TFC to go on and get their first road win of the season but we all knew it was never going to be straight forward like that.  TFC found a way to commit three major mistakes, one by Frei and two by Iro that allowed Dwayne De Rosario to net one of the easiest hat tricks you will ever see.  TFC answered back with goals from Marosevic, Koevermans, and even one from Julian De Guzman.

If you want a nice summary of the match then you came to the wrong place.  Instead I want to focus on the emotional roller coaster that TFC took me on last night.  Coming in to the game I just had that feeling that DeRo was going to put in a performance and i guess he did just that last night even though one of his goals was a penalty, one was misplayed by the keeper, and the other was basically gifted to him by Iro.  I will give credit where credit is due and say that DeRo did well to take advantage of the gifts that were being given to him by his former side.  I do not agree with the sentiment that I am coming across today that this game shows why TFC should have paid up and kept DeRo.  Instead I still think that letting him leave was the right move for a club that is looking to rebuild.  He is a very good MLS player and a proven goal scorer but Toronto needed to take that one step backwards so that they might one day to able to move a lot further forward.  The fact that DeRo scored a hattrick left me with a bad taste in my mouth but the one positive that I can take from it would be the fact that if DeRo is on form come the fall it will be a massive boost for the CMNT.  So I guess we can thank Andy Iro and the rest of TFC for giving him a confidence boost.

At the exact other end of the emotional roller coaster that was this match was watching Julian DeGuzman score a screamer of a long range goal.  The only thing wrong with his first goal for TFC was the fact that the ref should have never allowed it to happen since DCU were in the midst of making a change when JDG decided to take a quick freekick.  Again if you look at this from a Canadian perspective it is great news.  JDG will be a key member of the team and if he discovers any sort of his form from before he joined TFC then Canada will be in much better shape.  The end result of JDG's goal was DCU coach Ben Olsen being dismissed from the sidelines having just flipped his lid in reaction to the goal being allowed to stand.

The last part of the game that I want to cover is how I felt about Iro and his performance.  He was complete shit but I do not give him the entire blame for that.  TFC played much of the second half with basically only 2 actual defenders on the field and Iro was not getting much help at all.  He is a decent MLS defender but he needs to have a stronger partner in centre back.  He is not strong enough or confident enough to control the middle of the pitch without somewhere better there to help him.  He needs to play better then he did last night as the second goal was all his fault with him failing to clear the ball but the penalty he conceded was a real team effort.  He was not the only one in the box that was failing to clear the ball, just happened to be the one who got caught bringing the man down.  So blame him for one goal if you will but blame the entire team for the lack of defending that was going on in this game.

So like I said if you can't be good at least you should be exciting and at the moment TFC seem to have that covered.  I like the fact that they are scoring more goals, I have been impressed by some of the new additions to the side, not just Frings and Koevermans either and I think that even if the results are not coming in yet the team is going to be better once things settle down.  Games like this are giving me lots of reasons to be excited for 2012 and the chances of the team being in a position to be more competitive but before that I am just pleased that TFC are going to be a more entertaining team to watch down the stretch even if the playoffs are quickly fading from reach.

New Look TFC = Same Result

So we have talked about all the roster moves that TFC has made in the past month or so and there were a lot of them.  To be honest I am not even sure if Winter is all done making moves even now so who knows what else could be in store.   Last week though we got the chance to see this very changed TFC side in action twice after a fairly long layoff and sadly all we got as fans was a lot more of the same.

Against FC Dallas Winter put in 6 of the new players for the starting lineup meaning that the club eclipsed the 100 players all time mark and then some.  They also had more then half of their starting 11 players being fresh faces which was almost certain to result in a bit of a settling in period.  I won't be getting in to the actual match but the fact of the matter is that you could see the need for yet more patience.  The team still had a fair few areas that are in clear need of improvement and if not for an impressive effort from Frei things would have been a lot worse then the 1-0 final score.  The other thing that struck me was that Koevermans clearly had not played in a match of late and seemed to lack sharpness in front of goal.  Training can help a lot but for both Danny and Frings they went from being in their offseason to jumping straight in to the middle of a season so it might take them a while to get up to pace.  Speaking of Frings though he was one of the best players in the game for TFC.  He provided a sharpness and edge to the midfield and his passes were instrumental in almost all of the chances that TFC did manage to create.

On the weekend things looked a whole lot worse for TFC as the team continued to defend terribly and this time Frei was not able to stand on his head and keep the scoreline close.  An awful stretch of around 10 minutes saw the team conceding goals like it was going out of style.  The 3 goals in 9 minutes was more then enough to sink Toronto on the day and made sure that new comers Koevermans and Ryan Johnson picking up their first goals for the club was not enough.  In the end the score was 4-2 for Kansas City and for TFC it was the 4th straight defeat and 6th in their past seven matches.  There is no point in trying to sugar coat it at this point as we can all see that TFC are struggling and have a long ways to go still before they are really competitive in the MLS.  The problem is that no one on the team seems to know how to defend properly.  It is not just the back 4 that are to blame for this, but they do get their share of the blame, but also includes the midfield who seem lost more often then not when they are trying to track back and cover.  There is a part of this that has to be attributed to the coaching of the team as they do not seem prepared to defend properly and are often looking unorganized.  The other half of the problem is that the personal to play defense are just not their with all the injuries.  The team added Iro which is a plus and gives them another decent defender but they need at least 4 of them and they are well short of that number right now.

The problem that I see for TFC is that they do have some good defenders who are out for the season the most notable of them is Adrian Cann.  So if they were to go out and make trades to bring in more quality defenders then they would have a bit of an overload come the start of next season when everyone is fit.  So if you are planning for the long term you might just have to kiss any sort of playoff push goodbye and just make due with what you have and then work to improve things for the next season when you know who will be fit.  I personally think they will not make a lot more changes this season in the back line but I hope that they do bring in a top class centre back.  Not someone of Iro level but instead someone who would be among the best defenders in the MLS.  The club needs to make a big move in the back line but now is not the ideal time to do that barring De Guzman moving back to Europe.

So we have our first two games for the new look TFC in the books and it is clear that they still can't defend and that the wins are not just going to start pouring in now.  The club still has a long ways to go but at least as these players all settle in I expect the team to only get better.  In fact I would still say that despite continuing the losing ways TFC are better now then they were before all the roster moves.

Busy day in Winter's wonderland

When Toronto FC announced that they had signed Frings and Koevermans it was made clear that these two signings were just the beginning of the moves that we could expect from the club during the summer transfer window.  Today all that promise of activity came to life as the trade activity kicked off.  The first deal of the day saw TFC picking up Canadian midfielder Terry Dunfield from rival club Vancouver Whitecaps.  This deal saw Toronto sending allocation money and future considerations in exchange for the player.  The second move of the day was a big deal with the San Jose earthquakes that saw Toronto landing Jamaican international Ryan Johnson in exchange for Alan Gordon, Nana Attakora, and Jacob Peterson.

The first move to bring in Dunfield does two, or maybe even three, important things for Toronto FC.  Dunfield gives Toronto more depth in the centre of the midfield as the Canadian international is capable of slotting in to a number of different roles in the centre of the pitch.  Having cost Toronto very little this move seems to be a good piece of business.  The issue will be that Dunfield has shown all kinds of heart for Vancouver but often that covered up a number of shortcomings in his play.  He has often been at fault for turning the ball over and wasting chances.  Toronto will be hoping that he can thrive in a new city that will see him no longer playing in front of his own family and friends so often.  Dunfield will likely end up playing in the midfield in front of Frings or De Guzman which will give him freedom to help out the attack.

The second move of the day is by far the bigger one and the more important one.  While landing Dunfield helps the midfield bringing in Ryan Johnson gives an even bigger boost to the teams attack.  He will now be able to partner Koevermans in the attack in what shapes up to be a potentially lethal pairing.  Johnson is now 26 years old and had made 99 appearances for San Jose since joining the club back in 2008 as well as having made 13 international appearances for Jamaica.  Johnson was a part of the Jamaica side at this summers Gold Cup where he scored a pair of goals.  He gives TFC another proven attacker and hopefully he will be able to spend more time fit and in the lineup then Gordon did.  Speaking of Gordon he was one of the players that went the other way in this trade.  Along with Alan Gordon TFC gave up Nana Attakora and Jacob Peterson which to some might seem like a bit of a steep price to pay.  The fact of the matter is that Peterson has had more then his share of struggles this season and has been out of the lineup for a fair bit of time.  Nana has found himself completely out of favour and no matter how many people were out injured he still seemed to be unable to get a place in the starting lineup.  Gordon was Toronto's top scorer but he also had a lot of injury issues that saw him miss a number of games already this season.  To me the core of this deal is Toronto trading Gordon for Johnson which I think is a good deal for the club since they still get a scoring threat but hopefully Johnson does not develop the same sort of fitness issues.  The other key factor in this second deal is that Toronto was able to pick up an international roster spot which in my opinion would be a decent return for Peterson and a clearly unwanted Nana.  I think in the end Toronto have done well in this deal as long as it is not the end of the moves they are making since they now need to strengthen the side and get deeper in other areas.

The move to trade Nana means that of the players on the teams first season roster no one remains.  Nana had been the last player left around from season 1 but now it is like the club have completely made a fresh start.  In some ways we can say that on thursday one chapter of TFC's history came to an end and now the era of Winter has truly begun.  He has come good on his promise to shake up the roster and make changes and it was clear that he was not done yet.

On Friday the wheeling and dealing continued as TFC made another deal this time with Columbus Crew.  This move I am a bit less of a fan of since it saw Toronto sending Tony Tchani the other way and in my opinion he has been one of the clubs best players in recent weeks.  I guess in the eyes of the people in charge at TFC the move to bring in Dunfield meant that Tchani was extra to the needs in the centre of the park.  Granted there was a clear need to get some help in defence which is exactly what they did by acquiring Andy Iro in return.  Iro, who is 26 years old and from Liverpool, had been with the crew since 2008 where he played in over 50 matches having joined the team out of college being drafted 6th overall.  Since making his debut against none other then TFC Iro has gone on to develop in to a strong and confident defender.  At 6 foot 5 he will give the team a lot more strength and heading ability in the back line.  He is just the kind of player that TFC were in need of to strengthen the back line and more important he will bring them skill and not just serve as another body.  The second player that TFC got in return is Leandre Griffit who has only been in the MLS for a short time but at 27 years old he has had a lot of experience around the Europe including stops at Southampton, Crystal Palace, and IF Elfsborg.  He will come in as a depth player for the most part helping to round out the clubs midfield and fill the spot left by Tchani.  He only made a handful of appearances for Columbus so I do not really know what to expect from him and as such I am expecting him to just end up coming in as a role player who we will see from time to time.

So when Toronto FC take to the field in their next match against FC Dallas fans may just have a bit of a tough time recognizing any of the players.  Tchani, Gordon, Peterson, and Attakora will all be gone and instead the club will have Frings, Koevermans, Johnson, Dunfield, Griffit, and Iro.  That of course is assuming that they do not make any more deals before that game comes along.

A Whole Other Class: TFC-NYRB

So this part week Toronto FC were taking on the New York Redbull in what was always going to be a tough test for TFC but what they did on the day was prove that they are still a long ways from reaching the levels of the top teams in the MLS.  This game almost made the match against the Union seem like a close match since at least TFC were able to find the net on that occasion.

I have to be honest and say that despite the Red Bulls poor form coming in to the match, 3 draws and a loss in their 4 game road trip, I still felt that they were primed to crush TFC who would be unable to up their game from the level it had to be to defeat the Whitecaps twice last week.  That was mostly because of the fact that TFC are on an even worse run of form with Vancouver being the only team that they seem capable of beating.  Toronto have only that one win in the MLS since May 7th and in that time they have been shut out 5 times.  We all know by now that TFC have an anemic offence but it is even worse when they don't even have Gordon or Santos in the starting lineup like they did midweek.

When the lineups were announced and there was no Gordon or Santos it felt like the best that TFC were going to be able to get was a 0-0 draw since they just don't seem to have anyone else who can step up and score.  I don't even think that Gordon and Santos are great strikers or great goal scorers but the fact is that they are clearly the best options that the club has.  Compare Toronto having Soolsma, Plata, and Martina as their attacking options with the fact that New York had Henry, Rodgers, and Agudelo leading their line.  I guess there is no surprise that Toronto FC struggled to create any sort of attacking chances and New York had them in abundance.  The 5-0 final score was by no means flattering to the Red Bulls but I don't even want to get into the match itself more then that.

What I feel is the most worthy element of this game is the fact that this game once again illustrates how for behind Toronto FC are in terms of skill and experience.  I know that they are a side that is slowly being destroyed by injuries and that their two new signings are yet to be eligible to play for the team but I can't help but notice the gap in skill between the two sides.  The Red Bulls two designated players are Thierry Henry and Rafael Marquez who both have loads of experience on the world's biggest stages and despite being a bit advanced in age they still have the kind of quality that allows them to be stars in the MLS.  The Red Bulls third spot is still empty since they traded De Ro but chances are that when they do fill that spot it is going to be with a player who is better then any of the three designated players in Toronto's roster.  Toronto, having recently signed a pair of DP's, now have De Guzman, Frings, and Koevermans on its roster.  I do like all three of those players and think that when they were at their very best they were all world class but now none of them seem good enough to be dominant players in the MLS which is what you should expect from such players.  You can only have three of these players so you really are going to have to make them count which New York is clearly doing a better job of then Toronto is.  It may not be fair to expect TFC to go out and sign their own Beckham or Henry since Toronto is not the most appealing city and the team just does not have the same kind of budget but what I want to see is this gap starting to close down.  That would be the point of this rebuild that the club is going through after all.  Maybe we can will even one day see the club make a move for a world class player who is still in their prime and can be a real difference maker for the team.

So what is the point of all of this?  The point is that I do understand that TFC are going to lose games like this from time to time.  They are a side that is messed up by all kinds of injuries right now and even when they are completely fit they still would not be as good as the top teams in the league.  But what I need to start seeing is that TFC are making the kinds of moves that are going to help them close down this skill gap.  Frings and Koevermans are a start but with them taking up two of the DP spots the club is limited in that kinds of moves it can make to get better unless they go out and make some big trades.  Since I do understand that these kinds of defeats are bound to happen for this team I will just keep on hoping to see signs of progress from the team since the playoffs are not going to happen unless they start beating anyone not named the Whitecaps!

Here We Go Again

Earlier this week, Toronto FC found themselves on the wrong end of another blow out as New York Red Bull stampeded the Reds to a dominate 5-0 win. Goals from Thierry Henry, Luke Rodgers, Joel Lindpere, and Juan Agudelo (2) matched TFC's worse defeat in their five season MLS history. It has been a rough season for Stephen Frei and the Toronto back line that due to numerous injuries this season was patched together with Richard Eckersley playing in the middle. On top of the injury problems the Reds have had this season, it has also been a season of growth and rebuilding as Aron Winter looks to build his team.

In the match against New York, the Toronto back line was far from Winter's first choice of defenders. Richard Eckersley was moved from his regular right back position ,where he has played really well for TFC this season, to central defender. The fiery red head, who normally bombs forward in attack, was called upon to sit back, a very different role than he is used to. Eckersley was joined by Dan Gargan, Ty Harden, and Danleigh Borman, who was replaced by Ashtone Morgan at half time, in the back line. Nana Attakora and Adrian Cann have been out on long term injury and leave Toronto short at center defense. Hopefully when the Toronto FC back line is back to full health the Reds will see an improvement and watch that league high goals against start to slowly go down as the wins go up.

Aron Winter's goal when he came to Toronto FC during the off season was to bring Dutch style football to the MLS. Winter wants his TFC side to abandon the long balls to play a shorter passing possession game as used by the top European sides. The team that Winter inherited from his predecessor was not suited to play his technically high 4-3-3 formation. He did not have the players available to him to play the necessary positions so many players have been placed in roles that they have never played before. Some players have fit into Winter's system well and have been nice surprise in a dark season including youngster Joao Plata. Toronto FC's current groups of players have also shown that they are not technically skilled enough to play the Dutch style of football that the management staff is trying to introduce at BMO Field.

It is only half way through Winter's first season in charge of Toronto FC meaning he has not had much time in charge with the transfer window open so that he can build a team that fits his style of play. With the summer window now open, Winter has already made two big moves by bringing in two new designated players from top European sides in Torsten Frings and Danny Koevermans. Winter finally had the space and cash to build the team he wants and the addition of Fring and Koevermans adds a lot of experience at the top level and high technical skills to a Reds side that is experience growing pains this season.

After four seasons, Reds fans were upset because the sides was not producing anything on the field. Toronto FC had what their fans believed to be a strong team but had failed to make the playoffs in all four seasons. Now it seems that Toronto has taken a step back and are having a season similar to their first year in the league. But this is not the time to get upset with the team but rather it is the time to be patient. TFC needs to finally find stability at the manager position so they need to stick with Aron Winter who has a long term plan for the team. The fans and clubs have to be patient with Winter because this plan will not generate instant success but it will a couple seasons down the road.

Its time for patience, not change.