Well, for about twenty-odd minutes yesterday, it looked like opening day was going to be a very good-news story for Toronto FC.
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As promised, they were running, pushing and controlling the ball. Dwayne de Rosario was getting the ball in good positions, and bold young newcomer Javier Martina was kicking butt on the left wing – an all-but-unseen sight throughout TFC history.
They wanted the ball, they got the ball, they moved the ball.
Eventually, they even scored the ball, but not before falling behind when frequently maligned Vancouver Whitecap DP Eric Hassli corralled and cannoned home the first MLS goal in franchise history. (Also the first MLS goal for any former NASL championship franchise.)
After all the off-season upheaval – as most of yet another Mo Johnston roster needed to be lofted overboard in turgid seas – there were surprisingly only three new faces in Toronto’s starting eleven: Martina, a useful-looking Nick Soolsma on the right wing, and the scrappy Nathan Sturgis in the mid.
And for about twenty-odd minutes, it appeared that the new blood was filling the old holes productively, and this could indeed be the dawning of the age of Toronto FC or something.
They certainly answered Vancouver’s goal nicely. A long, perfect pass from a trailing Maicon Santos sprung DeRo home to glory – apparently for the eight-thousandth goal in league history. (No cheque-writing motion to commissioner Don Garber, in case history forgets to note it.)
But Vancouver lashed back through Terry Dunfield, which must have been a two-way jolt for any TFC-loving Manchester City fans who travelled thousands of klickometres to be there in person. (Hi, Duane!)
And that, it turned out, for Toronto, was that.
The midfield push subsided as the Reds tried to get a handle on the odd formation in their back four. TFC head man Aron Winter opted for a halfback pairing of Nana Attokora and Ty Harden, pushing former contract holdout Adrian Cann out to left fullback.
That wasn’t going well. Attakora was doing everything he could, Harden was invisible, Cann was getting lapped, and crowd favourite Dan Gargan (right fullback) made some gruesome giveaways.
Best way to mitigate that is want the ball, get the ball, push the ball, but by then the Whitecaps were dominating their suddenly vulnerable visitors on all counts.
Halftime stats said TFC had 63% of the ball in the first half. The machine must have broken down and stopped counting after DeRo’s goal.
Throughout the second half, the Reds unraveled. At one point, Attakora dished the ball off five times trying to start a play, only to get it back from everyone he’d passed to. Needless cough-ups and silly fouls compounded the fractures. Vancouver’s third goal was a corner kick that bounced off Gargan’s knee, and the fourth was a two-on-the-goalie breakout with no red shirts anywhere – even on the follow cam’s wide shot.
Kudos to Santos for blistering home a fine late Toronto goal, but despite the promising start, TFC got its kan kicked from Kitsilano to Kamloops.
So what do we know?
The first half hour was a blast to watch. Running, hustling creative play, lots of chances, three thumping goals. Give me lots more of that, please.
TFC couldn’t possibly have all gotten tired that quickly. Yet the tentativeness was set in concrete by halftime, and Winter couldn’t find the words – or roster moves – to set things right. Sure, the team wants to develop players, but subbing in an academy kid (Keith Makubuya) at halftime, a goal down, on the road, might have been too graphic a demonstration of roster thinness to sit well with Reds fans.
I did notice one telling difference between the way Toronto started the match, and the bad old habits they soon swooned into. Off the top, DeRosario was consistently getting the ball in useful situations. Service was coming – from the wings, even! – and DeRo had dangerous pass-shoot options. By the half-hour, though, he was having to come way back and fetch the ball, and all the running in the world wasn’t doing much to unhinge a pretty disciplined – and well prepared – Whitecaps back four.
The bright start fizzled, and Toronto got trounced.
Easy for me to say from a living room couch three time zones away, but if Winter wants this team to run and press, they can’t stop doing it half an hour in. There has to be consistent commitment. If you let the other team play comfortable soccer while sitting on a lead, they’ll be more than happy to oblige. Perhaps it wasn’t sporting that they kept running, forcing two more emphatic goals for themselves, but all concerned have to assume that might happen.
That’s why you want to control the ball in the first place, no?
A terrific effort from the Whitecaps. Congratulations, Vancouver, and welcome to the dance.
Onward!