TFC - 2022 Season Thread

[TOcanadafan]

11 hours ago, Bison44 said:

Salceido has been very mysterious to me, sometimes he plays a very nice pass out of the back and then he makes poor rookie mistakes...was he a good player before he came here....seriously??  Annnnnd now Mavinga is hurt.   Oh boy this could be shaping up into a long season cause Oneil doesnt look like he is the answer either. That should have been a winnable game, its a shame they are wasting the finishing of Jimenez.  

And Mr Parrot, always throwing out the strawman "stop the divisive CPL VS MLS" pearl clutching, when no one mentions CPL and they are calling him out on his cognative dissonance on attendance numbers and crowd pictures.  Seriously, we cant even mention TFC attendance in the TFC thread without this clown trying to shout it down??  Personally the TV shot at BMO has always looked sparse to me over the years, but i never thought it was some sort of scheme to fool us (why would they?) i just assumed that a couple of crowd shots didnt tell the whole story and the numbers were accurate.  But maybe I am too trusting.... 

Salcedo doesn’t look like he gives a crap.  O’Neill looks like a Sunday morning rec player (both in physique and play).  I was saying after last game that MacNaughton deserves a chance and so after this CB debacle he better get in next game.  Seeing as how they pay Salcedo so much money I doubt he’ll come out.

I believe the attendance numbers reported are tickets sold and not how many people actually show up.  I’m sure a bunch of empty seats are season ticket holders who can’t go / give away tickets.

[Kadenge]

If TFC don't fix their CB problems the signing of Insigne is going to be a waste of money. Their current  2 DPs are not playing like DPs

[narduch]

48 minutes ago, TOcanadafan said:

Salcedo doesn’t look like he gives a crap.  O’Neill looks like a Sunday morning rec player (both in physique and play).  I was saying after last game that MacNaughton deserves a chance and so after this CB debacle he better get in next game.  Seeing as how they pay Salcedo so much money I doubt he’ll come out.

I believe the attendance numbers reported are tickets sold and not how many people actually show up.  I’m sure a bunch of empty seats are season ticket holders who can’t go / give away tickets.

In the past the club claimed they report turnstile counts. Not tickets sold.

Either way something isn't right

[Macksam]

On 4/27/2022 at 4:46 PM, Kingston said:

While not the only ridiculous thing on this list, this is completely ridiculous.

Mavinga sure but leave my boy Oso alone, he's earned that. 

[narduch]

It's funny last week I was looking at the schedule with back to back games v Cincinnati followed by Vancouver and thinking a 9 point run could put TFC in a good spot to make a run for the playoffs.

But with yesterday's loss and NYCFC's win today TFC is now sitting out of the playoff spots 

[Free kick]

That's because its way too early to infer anything about whether you make the playoff or not.  The sample size (ie.:  number games played) is not big enough yet.   The concern at this time of the year is whether you are playing well more so than where you are in the standings. 

From what i have seen so far collectively, I would say that TFC is not playing very and I wouldn't say that its players who are not trying or anything like that.  Or that there is something wrong with the tactics etc etc.    I think its just that the overall talent level is not really there and the best example is that TFC is missing the one guy who can create something in the final third.  Yes M Bradley has really regressed but its not all on him,  I think Pozuelo should delivering the kind of quality you expect from from a DP and MLS MVP candidate.   

Insigne cant come soon enough.  But again,  the concern I have there is that if you play him more on the flanks as a 7 (his usual role) can he make the same kind of impact that a guy like Giovinco made?   Giovinco played a false 9 so he had more liberties.   So even though you can argue that Insigne was at another level from Giovinco,  a 7 cant elevate a weak team in MLS in the same way that a player in amore central role can.   I am anxious to see where B Bradley plays Insigne.

 

PS.:  i haven't mentioned the defensive issue.   There's a problem there with age, lack of familiarity, confidence in your partner,  talent regression...etc.   defensively,  when you turn over your personnel to that extent and so quickly, you are not going to have much success.

Edited May 1, 2022 by Free kick

[Bison44]

^^^  Agree.  Poz should be pulling the strings...he has a guy who finishes anything that resembles a chance (Jimenez). Oso makes things happen and Bradley can still spray some A+ passes around even if he has become a defensive liability.  Where Insigne fits in there, and how it works out...ieeee..its anyone guess.  But the real prob (like last year) is at the other end.  Its making me pine for the days of Drew Moor.  We keep spending big money bringing in Gonz, mavinga, Salceido etc and they cant seem to make anything work.  

[Free kick]

13 hours ago, Bison44 said:

^^^  Agree.  Poz should be pulling the strings...he has a guy who finishes anything that resembles a chance (Jimenez). Oso makes things happen and Bradley can still spray some A+ passes around even if he has become a defensive liability.  Where Insigne fits in there, and how it works out...ieeee..its anyone guess.  But the real prob (like last year) is at the other end.  Its making me pine for the days of Drew Moor.  We keep spending big money bringing in Gonz, mavinga, Salceido etc and they cant seem to make anything work.  

I believe that a good back line or defensive axe is as much about soft skills as talent.   And the players need to gel in order to play well.    I dont believe that Drew More was more talented than Salcedo but its just that Drew More fit well and had good chemistry with his defensive partner, D Mid and Goal keeper.  Drew More was good under that system.   The team played compact therefore his limited pace was not a factor because he seldom got caught in one on one situations with opposing attackers .   Whereas now, the team is playing a back three, has changed half of the defensive players and M Bradley is getting old fast.   

Edited May 2, 2022 by Free kick

[jordan]

I’ll reserve judgement until the summer after more pieces come. There are visible problems but we can wait to see how gaps are filled

[Free kick]

21 minutes ago, jordan said:

I’ll reserve judgement until the summer after more pieces come. There visible problems but we can wait to see how gaps are filled

That is true.  But even then, if they arrive in July there is will be an adjustment period,  as there has always been in these cases.  By the time they round into form,  it might be too late.  Deja vu all over again.

Edited May 1, 2022 by Free kick

[Bison44]

I think the fixes that are coming arent on the defensive end, no matter what the tweeter world has to say. Bringing in a solid MLS expereinced BC...hmmm they already did that, HAHAHA. They are 9 games in now, they should be gelling but appear to be getting worse. lets face it, Cincy isnt a top tier club and they made the D look horrible.  When you bring in vets like Oneil and Salceido you would hope they would get up to speed quickly.  As you say, not too late, but I dont see how Jimenez can play much better...they cant count on that to bail them out all year.  

[YorkRegionFan]

I think the injuries to Ralph Priso and Noble Okello have thrown a wrench into Bob Bradley's plans for back up for Michael Bradley.  If they were healthy, I think we would have seen more substitutions in for MB, as they gradually would earn the minutes.

[Kingston]

19 hours ago, Macksam said:

Mavinga sure but leave my boy Oso alone, he's earned that. 

I like Osorio.  The ridiculous part was Mavinga earning more that Osorio (or even anything close to him).

[narduch]

13 hours ago, Free kick said:

That's because its way too early to infer anything about whether you make the playoff or not.  The sample size (ie.:  number games played) is not big enough yet.   The concern at this time of the year is whether you are playing well more so than where you are in the standings. 

From what i have seen so far collectively, I would say that TFC is not playing very and I wouldn't say that its players who are not trying or anything like that.  Or that there is something wrong with the tactics etc etc.    I think its just that the overall talent level is not really there and the best example is that TFC is missing the one guy who can create something in the final third.  Yes M Bradley has really regressed but its not all on him,  I think Pozuelo should delivering the kind of quality you expect from from a DP and MLS MVP candidate.   

Insigne cant come soon enough.  But again,  the concern I have there is that if you play him more on the flanks as a 7 (his usual role) can he make the same kind of impact that a guy like Giovinco made?   Giovinco played a false 9 so he had more liberties.   So even though you can argue that Insigne was at another level from Giovinco,  a 7 cant elevate a weak team in MLS in the same way that a player in amore central role can.   I am anxious to see where B Bradley plays Insigne.

 

PS.:  i haven't mentioned the defensive issue.   There's a problem there with age, lack of familiarity, confidence in your partner,  talent regression...etc.   defensively,  when you turn over your personnel to that extent and so quickly, you are not going to have much success.

I think its a cop out to state its too early to judge this team. They have played over 25% of the season now.

This team has been poorly built and they are hoping papering it over with signings like Insigne will hide the fact.

I will admit that they had me fooled with that 4 game run prior to the NYCFC road match.

But losing at home to Cincinnati is pretty telling. Cincinnati stink

Edited May 2, 2022 by narduch

[RS]

On 4/30/2022 at 11:19 PM, Bison44 said:

And Mr Parrot, always throwing out the strawman "stop the divisive CPL VS MLS" pearl clutching, when no one mentions CPL and they are calling him out on his cognative dissonance on attendance numbers and crowd pictures.  Seriously, we cant even mention TFC attendance in the TFC thread without this clown trying to shout it down??

I mean, he was named directly. Which is why he responded. People often bait him into a response then get pissed that he actually does. It's weird.

As for the broader TFC attendance issue, the team will be fine in the stands. They're coming off their worst year in a decade and still look wildly inconsistent on the field, but they're still outdrawing many other MLS teams (including the other two in Canada). I'm not exactly worried about MLSE's finances.

[Kingston]

4 minutes ago, narduch said:

I think its a cop out to state its too early to judge this team. They have played over 25% of the season now.

This team has been poorly built and they are hoping papering it over with signings like Insigne will hide the fact.

I will admit that they had me fooled with that 4 game run prior to the NYCFC road match.

But losing at home to Cincinnati is pretty telling. Cincinnati stink

 

13 hours ago, Free kick said:

That is true.  But even then, if they arrive in July there is will be an adjustment period,  as there has always been in these cases.  By the time they round into form,  it might be too late.  Deja vu all over again.

The team is built with veterans down the spine and young Canadians everywhere else.  And with one major signing arriving later in the season.

This was always a team that was going to take time to come together.  We all knew that the first half of the year was going to be tough with a lot of uneven performances.  The plan was going to be to gradually improve so that, if we could keep in contact with the playoffs by the half way mark of the season, we'd be good enough to break in by the end.  

Ultimately, however, this year is actually about 2023.  By then our new signings will be integrated in to the team and the young Canadians will have had an actual season of legitimate minutes under their belts.  We'll know which ones are the real deal and how the new signings have fit in.  During the off season, we should only need to make one or two meaningful changes and then we hit the ground running in 2023.

This year, just enjoy the good moments and see the bad ones as building experiences.

[Trois Reds]

15 hours ago, Kingston said:

 

The team is built with veterans down the spine and young Canadians everywhere else.  And with one major signing arriving later in the season.

This was always a team that was going to take time to come together.  We all knew that the first half of the year was going to be tough with a lot of uneven performances.  The plan was going to be to gradually improve so that, if we could keep in contact with the playoffs by the half way mark of the season, we'd be good enough to break in by the end.  

Ultimately, however, this year is actually about 2023.  By then our new signings will be integrated in to the team and the young Canadians will have had an actual season of legitimate minutes under their belts.  We'll know which ones are the real deal and how the new signings have fit in.  During the off season, we should only need to make one or two meaningful changes and then we hit the ground running in 2023.

This year, just enjoy the good moments and see the bad ones as building experiences.

We haven't had any defence since 2018.  This team has regressed at the back for four years and is expecting a 35 year old Italian who's going down with his ship to Serie B to shore it up over the next two years.  5-4, like against NYCFC, will probably be the norm, not an anomaly over the season.  0 clean sheets in nine games this year.  Since 2018: 2, 4, 9, 2.  That is terrible.  17 shutouts in 132 games the last 4+ years, and more than half of them in a shortened Covid year. And remember the Union ending our Supporter's Shield chances with a 5-0 blowout in 2020?

If the TFC brass think that they can beat their opponents by scoring 2-3 goals every single game, we will have more games like Cincinnati. Or Columbus. Or Red Bulls. Or NYC. If the offence dries up for five games, that's a five game losing streak.  It's easier to lose your scoring than to fix your defence, and I don't see this D-line suddenly giving us a chance in 2023. TFC has been building from the midfield out, while forgetting there's a backline that needed improving yesterday.

Edited May 3, 2022 by Trois Reds

[Bison44]

The worst part is they did bring in 2 CBs, and so far they look very underwhelming.  I'm sure Manning thought exactly what Kingston is saying for next year....one or two meaningful changes and we hit the ground running.  Except I think they screwed the pooch again.  

Granted Oniel is prob on the cheap and is really just a depth signing, but Salceido was supposed to be a stud, just like Gonzalez.  A DP CB for cripes sake and he doesnt look much better than Mcnaughton most of the time.  How much of this can you blame on Bradley being a defensive liability, or the system being wrong , or the FB being green....lots, but I expected more, and hoped Mavinga would bounce back out of his last years funk.  

[An Observer]

17 hours ago, Kingston said:

 

The team is built with veterans down the spine and young Canadians everywhere else.  And with one major signing arriving later in the season.

This was always a team that was going to take time to come together.  We all knew that the first half of the year was going to be tough with a lot of uneven performances.  The plan was going to be to gradually improve so that, if we could keep in contact with the playoffs by the half way mark of the season, we'd be good enough to break in by the end.  

 

I also think that they are making an honest attempt to see how the young Canadians go and then by mid-season, figure out where those experiments havent worked, and probably plug with a vet or two either from inside or outside the league.  Tbh, that is what most people have been on here clambering for years for.  And with Insigne on board, they hope to be within striking range of a playoff spot to make a run and get in.  they probably didn't bank on their CBs being so bad including the new signings.  But perhaps it still works out for them...

[jordan]

 

[narduch]

So Salcedo and Achara have covid 

[narduch]

More reinforcements from the reserve team.

 

[Bison44]

Geesh, are we sure there isnt 3-4 more guys out with COVID??  

[Cblake]

42 minutes ago, narduch said:

More reinforcements from the reserve team.

 

With his latest short term deal, Themi has reached the max of 4 in a season. TFC has the roster room so expect him to be signed to a home grown deal sometime soon. This is Kobe's 3rd of the season so he can sign one more. 

[nfitz]

On 4/30/2022 at 5:25 PM, narduch said:

Officially announced 23,591. That is their highest of the season 

Though it looked the lowest. I think until now, they've announced actual attendance, and this was the paid attendance. Until now, I was surprised it wasn't a bit higher. On Saturday I laughed ...

Odd, as it was by far the nicest game-day of the season so far.

Edited May 4, 2022 by nfitz