It was predictable.
The hopeful TFC fan – if such a fan still exists -- might have entered the stadium last night with visions of an unexpected victory against a superior opponent. However, even if that fan had deluded themselves into thinking it was possible they must have known how unlikely it was.
So, when Santos turned it on in the dying moments of the game and caught TFC for two goals it really shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Still, for those that were there it was a frustrating experience to watch the last possible bit of meaningful football (if you define meaningful as competing for a cup or championship) end like that. The 12,000 empty seats screamed out a different message – that the vast majority of Reds’ fans don’t particularly view the CONCACAF Champions League as all that important and, to them, that last bit of meaningful football was played at BMO about two months ago.
So, now we play out the string. The reality is that the vast majority of football clubs in the world face this every year and it’s only the fairly liberal MLS playoff system that makes Toronto’s situation seem out of the ordinary.
It is though. As North American fans we are used to playoff hunts and late season excitement. When denied that for two straight years it’s understandable that a fan could feel aggrieved.
As an aside, the losing of the last two years has given some TFC fans amnesia about the early years. Although TFC has been out of the playoffs since the start, they have only been this far out of it the last two years and the expansion year. The other three seasons have all had moments where fans felt like they were at least in the conversation.
After the game there was talk of fan protests and of boycotting games – somehow empty seats might make MLSE finally understand that they need to do better. Empty seats might drive home the point that the ticket pricing next year needs to be in line with the current demand, and that a tangible gesture of goodwill would go a long way, but it’s not going to make TFC defend set-pieces any better. Still, the thinking behind the idea is understandable.
Regardless, TFC fans face a long fall with little motivation. To the football purest there is value in all games. Not everyone thinks that way though so expect a lot of empty seats at BMO the rest of the way.
How the club reacts to those empty seats will go a long way to determine how many of them remain so next spring.