Toronto FC is still working hard to earn their first taste of Major League Soccer postseason action, but the club and its fans will get an appetizer this weekend. Saturday's match between the Reds and Real Salt Lake is, for all intents and purposes, a knockout game for the home side.
TFC enters the game with 36 points, two back of New England for the eighth and final playoff spot. D.C. United and FC Dallas also have 36 points, while Real have 37 after their win against New York last Wednesday. The Reds would technically still be alive if they draw and New England, Dallas and D.C. all lose on the weekend, but TFC interim head coach Chris Cummins knows that realistically, his team needs the maximum three points.
"If we don't win on the weekend, that's it, the season's over," said TFC interim head coach Chris Cummins. "It's up to us to go out there and perform for 92 or 93 minutes."
Cummins' specific mention of the time beyond the usual 90 minutes is a sign of what TFC's preparations have centered on during the week -- staying aggressive for the entire match and not allowing late goals. The Reds were rocked by a stoppage-time equalizer last weekend that turned a win against the San Jose Earthquakes into a 1-1 draw. It was the 15th goal that Toronto has allowed after the 75th minute this season.
Defender Nana Attakora said that the coaching staff didn't introduce any new tricks about how to close out games during the week's training, but rather just reiterated the basics.
"We sit down, look at their strengths and focus on how we can stop them," Attakora said. "Not too many different things since Chris has been teaching us everything all year. So it's not so much new material but just really enforcing what we've been taught. He's put it in our heads, we can't give up late goals."
Attakora scored TFC's goal against San Jose last Saturday and has now found the back of the net in both of his team's last two matches at BMO Field. This newfound scoring touch is the latest example of how the 20-year-old has blossomed into one of the Reds' best players, though he still sees every game (even a major one like Saturday's date with RSL) as a learning experience.
"I need pressure as a young player," Attakora said. "Games like that, I'll get more comfortable [playing them] in the future. It's only good for me. We know we need a win, we know what we need to do. We're not going to think about it too much tonight, we'll just relax and come in tomorrow."
Attakora's presence on the back line will be needed more than ever given that fullback Marvell Wynne will again be held out of the starting XI due to a lingering thigh strain. Cummins said that Wynne isn't yet quite fit to start, though he said the defender may be available as a late-game substitute.
Wynne said on Thursday that it was particularly frustrating to be hurt when TFC was in the midst of such an important stretch of games.
"I don't like watching in any way," Wynne said. "I don't like being on the bench, I don't like being injured, I don't like spectating in any way when I know I can be out there helping my team. But if I'm not 100 percent, I'm not any good."
Brian Edwards will be back between the posts for TFC as regular goalkeeper Stefan Frei is still bothered by a finger injury. Cummins promised some other changes to the lineup, with the most notable inclusion likely to be Amado Guevara, back from international duty.
Guevara returns to Toronto in the wake of his greatest achievement in soccer. The midfielder captained his Honduras team to a 1-0 win in El Salvador last Wednesday that qualified Honduras for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It will be just the second appearance for Honduras in soccer's biggest tournament and their first appearance since 1982.
The qualification set off a massive celebration in Guevara's country, with Thursday even being named a national holiday. Guevara is sure to be tired from the festivities when he arrives back in Toronto on Friday evening, but Guevara had a similar short turnaround last month when he returned late on a Friday evening before TFC's Saturday afternoon game against Colorado on Sept. 12. Guevara not only played the full 90 minutes that day, he also assisted on Attakora's game-winning goal.
"Amado is a terrific player, and the longer you keep him on the pitch the better," Cummins said. "He knows his body, he knows how fit he feels, and you saw in the last game, he flew back overnight and played the 90 minutes without it being an issue for him. Because he's experienced enough, he knows when to run forward and when to drop off ... he'll manage the game to the best of his abilities and if he feels good he'll last the full 90 minutes."
The Reds will be looking to avenge their 3-0 loss to RSL at Rio Tinto Stadium on June 27 and become the latest MLS team to defeat the Utah side in the reverse fixture. Real have an outstanding 8-1-5 record on their home field with 31 goals scored, but are completely different on the road. Away from Rio Tinto, RSL is 2-10-2 with a mere nine goals scored. Only league-worst New York has fewer road goals and more road losses than do Real.
In spite of this poor away record, Real know that a loss will severely dent their own postseason aspirations and thus Cummins expects a spirited performance from the visitors on Saturday.
"We need to win, they need something out of the game as well so it's going to be open," Cummins said. "We're going to take the game to them and be aggressive."
As if the Toronto coach didn't have enough on his plate for the weekend, Sunday also happens to be his 38th birthday. Forget a new tie or some gift certificates -- all Cummins wants is a win.
"Get three points on Saturday. I'll be happy with that," Cummins said.
Mark Polishuk is a contributor to MLSnet.com.
