TORONTO – The second-half collapse against New York City FC on Sunday has people asking what is going on with Toronto FC?
After taking the lead through a wonderful Victor Vazquez chip, it seemed as though the promise that the team would emerge as their true selves after the World Cup break was coming to fruition. But a comeback loss via Jo Inge Berget's brace proved otherwise. And it doesn't get much easier with a visit from the in-form New York Red Bulls on Sunday (4:30 pm ET | FOX, TSN – Full TV and streaming info).
The lengthy injury list has been the obvious explanation for Toronto's 2018 struggles. Key pieces – Jozy Altidore, Drew Moor, Chris Mavinga – remain unavailable. But is now the time to look beyond the absences for a more critical assessment of what ails?
For Greg Vanney, it is the second-order effects that Toronto are struggling with: Injuries led to moving players into different positions and roles, forcing adaptation. As players return, those who have adapted have to readjust; all have to redevelop relationships.
And the injuries will not cease: Auro Jr. was forced off at halftime in the Bronx with a hamstring concern. He will undergo scans to determine its extent. Justin Morrow, one of those just coming back from a long absence, was also a scare late, but his problem was just cramping on a hot and humid afternoon.
Closing out a strange June, where the Reds played out a pair of high-scoring, come-from-behind draws – pulled back by Columbus Crew SC and clawing back against D.C. United – as well as a solid away win over the Philadelphia Union, the loss against NYCFC brought a new concern: an apparent lack of effort.
The game-winner, where a turnover saw heads drop and few bother to respond and recover, was one of two particular plays that raised concerns. The other was a counterattack as TFC sought an equalizer, spurred by Tosaint Ricketts, where the lack of support his teammates provided was pronounced.
“It's something we as a group have to address,” said Vanney of the effort his side has displayed. “There were plays where we just walked back. That's not an acceptable reaction. I don't care how frustrated, how tired you are, you still make the effort to recover.”
For Osorio, reading too much into those moments is all a part of the job.
“Because we're losing, everything is under the microscope,” he said. “That is sports. We can't let that faze us. We go to the next game; if we win, the story changes.”
From MLS Cup champions to playoff outsiders in a matter of months, the pressure has been mounting all season long. That has had an effect.
“There is that urgency,” said Morrow, “that we have to win every game.”
Such pressures, both internally and externally, are part and parcel of being TFC these days.
“This is what we've set out to be, what we've been preaching for the last couple years, to make this club the kind that has those expectations,” said midfielder Jonathan Osorio. “If we're not living up to it, there are going to be people outside criticizing. As long as on the inside we're together, know we can get out of it, that's the important thing.
“It hasn't been an easy season, for sure,” he noted. “Pressure is every day. To be at TFC now, you have to be able deal with it.”
