Letdown for TFC as Crew cruises
Wednesday’s jubilation, Saturday’s sorrow.
Toronto FC’s hopes of a home playoff match took a hit with a 2-0 loss to Columbus Crew at BMO Field after a historic midweek victory.
“We need to be sharper with the ball and a little bit more dangerous and clear in our attacking thoughts,” head coach Greg Vanney said following the match.
Toronto dropped to third with the loss and could fall as low as fifthplace in the Eastern Conference by the time the weekend is over.
Vanney made five changes to the team that lined up against the New York Red Bulls for the playoff-clinching victory midweek.
Michael Bradley and Ahmed Kantari replaced the injured Jonathan Osorio and Damien Perquis respectively, while a rested Sebastian Gio- vinco came in for Herculez Gomez.
Robbie Findley replaced Ashtone Morgan in midfield and, in a surprise move, Vanney started goalkeeper Joe Bendik — who hasn’t played since Aug. 8 — ahead of recent No. 1 Chris Konopka.
It was a move Vanney had alluded to Friday — he wanted much of the squad to get minutes before the playoffs — but the changes affected Toronto’s consistency, a factor many of the Reds’ players pointed to in recent weeks when explaining the team’s four-game winning streak ahead of Saturday.
Toronto’s defence kept the league’s joint leading scorer, Kei Kamara, quiet by limiting crosses and jumping with him in the box.
And the first chance of the game went Toronto’s way as midfielder Robbie Findley dinged a header from the far post 22 minutes in.
But with Giovinco alone up front for the first half, Toronto’s offence failed to cause much trouble for the Crew’s backline. And, after comfortably controlling the half, Columbus’s attack became more potent as halftime neared.
But it took some poor refereeing to put the visitors ahead.
Reds defender Justin Morrow was pulled down in the box by Crew midfielder Ethan Finlay. The foul wasn’t called and Columbus earned a corner. It was then Finlay, who drifted to the back post, tapped in the go-ahead goal.
“I thought 100 per cent it was a foul,” captain Michael Bradley said of the tackle on Morrow. “Sometimes you get those, sometimes you don’t.”
The injection of substitutes Luke Moore and Gomez allowed the Reds to be more threatening in the second half but, barring a Giovinco free kick, Columbus ’keeper Steve Clark had a quiet afternoon.
An injury time goal from Federico Higuain was the final nail in the coffin for Toronto on the day.
If Toronto sits in fifth place after the last game of the regular season next Sunday, the Reds would be looking at a one-and-done away match in the first round of the post-season.
It’s not the way Toronto will want to end the season.
Still, Bradley said confidence remains high within the squad as it closes out a stretch of home games with 12 of 15 possible points.
“It’s been, by and large, a very good stretch for us. We get a few days now to recover and get ourselves ready for the last regular season game in Montreal knowing everybody is going to go into that game with a lot to play for.”