MLS SHOULD BE RED WITH ENVY
TFC proving to be one of league’s greatest ever as it tracks down CONCACAF title
There was a time when Toronto FC’s CONCACAF Champions League trophy case seemed audacious, presumptuous and exceedingly preliminary. The Reds were nowhere close to filling it when they carved out a place for it inside the BMO Training Ground.
It has collected dust ever since and been mocked by passersby who appreciated the ambition, but lacked the imagination to believe the goal was attainable. Liga MX sides, they rightfully said, have been too dominant in the competition. Furthermore, there was little evidence to suggest MLS sides had improved comparatively. While the Reds set out to shatter that belief three years ago, record-breaking domestic campaigns did nothing to break a long-held stigma: MLS clubs are a class below glitzy Liga MX sides.
So the undisputed best side in MLS history targeted Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final meeting with Tigres as a chance to show its indisputable quality in a real match against a side billed as the best the Americas have to offer.
They saw it as an opportunity to show fans and naysayers and themselves that the quality currently on display at BMO Field isn’t just worth the price of admission, but is unprecedented. Even if Wednesday’s impressive 2-1 win isn’t enough to advance from next week’s return leg, the Reds put even more distance between themselves and the rest of the league that’s chasing them.
League guru Matt Doyle called Tigres “probably the best side” any MLS team has beaten in an official competition since D.C. United topped Brazil’s Vasco da Gama 20 years ago.
If anything, Wednesday’s result further suggests Toronto FC is in the midst of something special with a group of players that’s the closest thing we’ve seen to an MLS dream team. However, there’s no promise this group of players will still be around two to three years from now. Defender Drew Moor, 34, is playing on year-to-year deals next to aging Justin Morrow, who remains in top form ahead of his 31st birthday. Victor Vazquez, 31, has vowed to return to Spain to finish his career, while both Jonathan Osorio and Marky Delgado have suitors outside Major League Soccer.
Jozy Altidore and Sebastian Giovinco are in the penultimate seasons of their five-year deals. It’s difficult to see how the league’s best forward tandem remains intact beyond 2020 given Toronto FC’s top players are drawing increased interest from outside suitors. They’re realities that should galvanize Toronto FC supporters and MLS fans to appreciate what they’ve witnessed and will continue to witness at BMO Field. This week’s momentous 2-1 Champions League win was the most recent of an astonishingly long line of big moments at BMO over the previous three years, beginning with Giovinco’s Goal from the Gods, the finish that sealed TFC’s first playoff berth. The following season brought even more theatre when dramatic game-winners in three consecutive home playoff fixtures saw the Reds claim an MLS Cup berth. Last season brought more of the same when Altidore’s secondhalf goals saw the Reds end their record-breaking season with a championship. Reflecting back highlights exactly how good things have been since the Reds set sights on the prize they’re currently chasing.
The club already has achieved what it wanted to in terms of public opinion. The question now is whether TFC can fill the only vacant trophy case in its building.
Toronto FC has rewarded French-born Congolese defender Chris Mavinga with an improved contract.
The MLS club called it a multiyear contract extension, but a source confirmed Mavinga’s existing deal has been torn up and replaced with a new one with an extra year of term.
The 26-year-old joined the MLS champions ahead of last season on a transfer from Russia’s Rubin Kazan in January 2017.
After an uneven start, he has become a fixture in the Toronto back line and played in 31 regular-season and playoff games in 2017. Left-footed and blessed with good speed, Mavinga has proved to be a calming influence on the Toronto defence. Mavinga made a crucial late tackle Wednesday to deny a potential tying goal in Toronto’s 2-1 win over Mexican champion Tigres.
Mavinga made US$300,691 last season, according to the MLS Players Association, to rank fifth on Toronto’s payroll behind designated players Giovinco, Michael Bradley and Altidore and Spanish playmaker Vazquez. Fullback Justin Morrow signed a multi-year extension last week following a stellar 2017 season that saw him named to the MLS BestXI.
Toronto had previously resigned defenders Moor and Eriq Zavaleta.
Toronto FC is in the midst of something special with a group of players that’s the closest thing we’ve seen to an MLS dream team.