After two games against the New York Red Bulls, the total score is Juan Pablo Angel and Jozy Altidore 5, Toronto FC 1.
New York's two strikers have single-footedly dominated TFC in the two matches between the clubs this season. It was Angel's two goals in two minutes that made the difference in a 2-1 loss to the Red Bulls on June 6, and the Columbian star scored the opening goal in New York's 3-0 decision against Toronto on Aug. 12. Altidore added a brace in that match to pad New York's lead as part of a 21-shot barrage against the Toronto defenders.
Clearly, the focus for Toronto FC is to keep New York's dynamic duo off of the scoresheet, though such a feat is easier said than done. Angel's 17 goals this season are nearly as many as TFC have scored as a club (20) in 2007.
"[Angel] is very tricky, and he's very smart," said defender Marvell Wynne. "I don't think he's going to be the one that will be making the most runs, the one that will doing the most on the ball or the one that'll be the most dangerous offhand, but he's very smart and he knows where to be when it's the right time."
TFC coach Mo Johnston hailed Angel as being worth every penny of the contract the Red Bulls needed to pay to acquire him as their designated player.
"He's almost their whole salary cap," Johnston said. "But look how many points he's brought to New York.
"Juan Pablo Angel is a hell of a player. We need to close him down and we need to close him down in a manner that we keep him out of that penalty box."
As for Altidore, Johnston couldn't help but express some pride at the 17-year-old sensation's emergence. It was Johnston who drafted Altidore in the second round (17th overall) in the 2006 MLS SuperDraft when Johnston was head coach of the Red Bulls.
Johnston said he scouted Altidore when the youngster played for the U.S. under-17 national team and came away impressed by his natural talent.
"When you're looking for draft picks and looking for younger guys, you're looking for the athleticism like [TFC's] Maurice [Edu] or Marvell," Johnston said. "You look for the talent, you look to see how hungry they are, how they interact with their teammates, what they do after practice. ... You look for an upside and see how you can make them get better."
The first overall pick of that 2006 draft was another Red Bulls pick -- Marvell Wynne. The Toronto defender said he was very appreciative of his former teammate's talent.
"[Altidore] is very active," Wynne said. "He's a hard worker. Being on his team you always respected that and you can always count on him to be at least going towards the right spot or opening up space. Playing against him it's difficult tracking him all the time and knowing where he is."
The Toronto backfield will be using youth to counter young Altidore and the tough Red Bulls attack. With defender Tyrone Marshall suspended for Thursday's match due to accumulation of yellow cards, 18-year-old Gabe Gala will make his first start for Toronto FC.
Gala, a Canadian under-20 international, has played 40 minutes for TFC this season and will be seeing his first action since June 17. He scored the winning goal for the Toronto reserves in a 2-0 win against the D.C. United reserves last Saturday.
Johnston said that 18-year-old Joey Melo would also see some playing time on Thursday as part of the coach's initiative to give his younger talent a chance now that the Reds have been all but officially eliminated from the MLS playoff chase.
"The young kids have done well," Johnston said. "In D.C. Gabe Gala scored a nice goal, Joey played very well and [striker Andrea] Lombardo got a goal. These are young kids, [between] 17 years old and 19 years old and this is a good time to start to learn and get a couple of games under their belt before next season."
Though the club is looking ahead to 2008, Johnston warned that his club will still put forth a full effort in order to get a measure of revenge against New York.
"We're obviously not going to lose a game or undermine anyone who's trying to get in the playoff situation," Johnston said. "We're going to try to win the game. Young Gabe Gala has deserved his position. We'll play him a little further forward and play Todd [Dunivant] a little bit behind him just to give him that little bit of support."
With New York on a bit of a cold streak (0-1-3 in their last four matches), Toronto FC see Thursday's game as a chance to get some revenge against their Eastern Conference foes, snap their 12-game winless drought and collect their first win (0-3-1) against opponents they're facing for the third time.
"You always want to get the last laugh or whatever you can do," Wynne said. "They've beaten us twice so in the end it's a positive for the team to not go under to a team three consecutive times."
is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
