TORONTO – As if Toronto FC needed further motivation heading into a derby match against Montreal, Greg Vanney knows exactly which button to push to recall the emotion of last season's defeat.
“You can pick that up quickly by watching the end of the game, the guys walking off the field, and the celebration of the opponent,” said Vanney on Friday after training. “You get that pit in your stomach again; remembering what that was like.”
Toronto FC made the playoffs for the first time in their history last season, only to see their hopes of a cup run abruptly dashed by a pair of defeats in Montreal that first cost them a home fixture, then bounced them from the postseason.
In the midst of a four-match winless run this season that has eliminated chances of a Supporters' Shield and made a two-top finish in the Eastern Conference all the more difficult, the side will be well aware that Sunday's match against the Impact, in the Final Push to the Playoffs (3 pm ET, TSN2/RDS in Canada | ESPN in US) is rife with implication.
“As players you want to play in big games, where the lights come on brightest. You get to the end of the year and everything is on the line,” said club captain Michael Bradley. “That gets magnified when you're playing against your biggest rival.”
Both Bradley and Jozy Altidore, imports to this most Canadian of derbies, have excelled against Montreal. Bradley has two goals and two assists in six MLS matches against the Impact, while Altidore has three goals in five meetings.
Sebastian Giovinco too has relished these matches, scoring three and assisting three more in his five against Montreal. He has missed the last five TFC matches with injury, but "the expectation" is he will be traveling with the side to Montreal, coincidentally, the side against whom he exited back in August's 1-0 Impact win at BMO Field.
“[Giovinco] only got partial work in today,” said Vanney after training. “That was the strategy of this week. He's put in some extra days due to the schedule he's had. He's doing fine.“
With a sold out Stade Saputo and some 200 traveling Toronto fans in attendance, the atmosphere will be palpable.
“Rivalries come down to the fans and the passion that they have for their team, for the game,” explained Bradley. “When you talk about Toronto-Montreal, [there is] the history on the soccer side, but also everything that goes into it in terms of the two cities. You rely on the fans to lead the way in terms of passion, emotion, and what the game means.”
With a packed house, crucial points, and heightened emotions, never mind the memory of the fracas that saw Calum Mallace dismissed before halftime in the August meeting, Vanney would make it a point to remind his players to not let the event get the better of them.
“This time of year, every misstep, poor decision, loss of your head, can cost you. Discipline and emotional control are important. Play with the utmost intensity, desire, and passion, but be able to control [it],” said Vanney. “It's playing with a pure emotion, but managing your emotion; that's not always easy.”
That said, TFC are ready and willing for Sunday's challenge: “The opportunity to play in big games, to compete, to put everything on the line... that's fun,” smiled Bradley. “That's why we do what we do.”
