Tuesday Training Notes

Image courtesy of Daylife

Marvell Wynne's stunner from this past weekend is up for Goal of the Week. Click here to vote for Wynne. He is currently trailing Josh Wolff by a mere 3% of the vote.

Mark Polishuk seems to think that we're still in the playoff race. His article can be found at TorontoFC.ca. We may have tied on Saturday, but Kansas City, New York and DC United all lost. I guess we did make a little bit of ground.

The Montréal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps will square off in the USL First Division Playoffs semi-finals. Click here to read an article about it from the National Post. Both sides are looking for expansion into MLS in 2011 and this would be the perfect opportunity to showcase their class both on and off the pitch.

The UEFA Champions League resumes today. Ives Galarcep has put together a pretty good preview of everything going on. Click here to read it.

That's all for now, have a great day folks. Be sure to let me know what you think about my Canadian Targets.

My Canadian Targets

Back in 2006 when Toronto FC was founded, one of its main purposes was to provide Canadian players with a local professional club. In the club's early stages, we signed numerous Canadian players, such as Jimmy Brennan, Greg Sutton, Chris Pozniak, Marco Reda, Adam Braz, and Miguel Canizales. Only Brennan and Sutton remain and with only Kevin Harmse added, Mo Johnston has come under quite a lot of criticism for the lack of Canadian content on Toronto FC.

There are many Canadian players that would not only play in MLS, but succeed in it. We all know about Julian De Guzman, Atiba Hutchinson, and Rob Friend. We can be realistic and acknowledge that all three of them have flourishing European careers at the moment and would not come to MLS right now. Aside from those three, there are players both within MLS and abroad that I would like to see feature for Toronto FC. Here are my Canadian targets.

Dwayne De Rosario
Current Club: Houston Dynamo (USA)
Position: Attacking Midfield

Image courtesy of NY Times

This one is obvious. The Scarborough native is a proven MLS star, having lead Houston to the past two MLS Cup championships. With Mo Johnston's comments about wanting a Canadian DP for us, DeRo tops the shortlist. It is no doubt that he would be a fan favourite in Toronto. He is under contract with Houston for one more season after this one, so to acquire him we would likely need to offer Houston quite the deal. Can it get done? I certainly hope so. If Mo doesn't bring DeRo home this off season, I'm sure many more supporters will have his head on the chopping block.

Adrian Serioux
Current Club: FC Dallas (USA)
Position: Right Back, Centre Half, Holding Midfield

Image courtesy of Daylife

Serioux has been solid at centre back for Canada in the midst of dismal World Cup Qualifying displays by our country. John Carver has mentioned that he is looking to add two centre backs this season, and adding Serioux would not only add talent to our defense, but enhance our Canadian content. He may have had his issues with TFC supporters in the past, but I'm sure a couple solid performances would win over the hearts of many diehards.

Lars Hirschfeld
Current Club: CFR Cluj (Romania)
Position: Goalkeeper

Image courtesy of Daylife

Many people would argue that Greg Sutton has been our MVP this season. He has been solid in goal for us, but his consistency still remains a question. He tends to make near-impossible saves but then will allow a howler. Hirschfeld, who has started Canada's last two World Cup Qualifiers, is the back up keeper at Romanian club CFR Cluj and could be tempted with a potential move home. He would increase competition for the job of starting keeper and would likely emerge as one of the league's best in goal.

Paul Stalteri
Current Club: Tottenham Hotspur (England)
Position: Right Back

Image courtesy of Daylife

Stalteri hates the turf and he would probably demand a lot of money. It may be worth the gamble though, seeing as Marvell Wynne will likely jump ship to Europe soon. Stalteri is a regular fixture in Tottenham's reserves these days and is finding first team appearances few and far between. He has vocally admitted he is looking for a new club, and he is a quality defender who would do well in Major League Soccer. The Canadian national team captain would be a hit in Toronto, but what would it take to get him here?

Jaime Peters
Current Club: Ipswich Town (England)
Position: Wing Midfield

Image courtesy of Daylife

Jaime Peters is another Toronto native. He is only 21 years old and currently on the fringe of the first team at Ipswich Town in the Coca Cola League Championship. A move back home to play for us would likely ensure he gets more time in the first team, and he would definitely be one for the future. He has incredible pace and would be a welcome addition on either side of our midfield, competing with Johann Smith and Rohan Ricketts for playing time. It might take a bit to convince him to return from treading European waters, but if he does come, he could become one of Major League Soccer's brightest young talents.

Here are some others that I think we should target:

Ali Gerba
Current Club: Milton Keynes Dons (England)
Position: Striker

Richard Hastings
Current Club: Inverness CT (Scotland)
Position: Centre Half

André Hainault
Current Club: FK SIAD Most (Czech Republic)
Position: Centre Half

Tomasz Radzinski
Current Club: Skoda Xanthi (Greece)
Position: Striker, Wing Midfield

Olivier Occean
Current Club: Lillestrom SK (Norway)
Position: Striker

There you have it. Five Canadians that I think Toronto FC has the potential to sign this off season, plus some others we might want to take a look at as well. What do you guys think of my targets? Am I way off? Which Canadians would you like to see on Toronto FC?

Monday Training Notes

I've only seen one real update from the world of Toronto FC. The club website offers an update on the fitness of Julius James and Carlos Ruiz here. Both players appear to be day-to-day and will likely be match-time decisions for Saturday's clash with the Red Bulls.

Real Salt Lake unveiled Rio Tinte as their new stadium sponsor. Click here for the press release. Rio Tinte Stadium is set to be opened this coming Saturday when Real Salt Lake take on the New York Red Bulls.

Just as Chivas USA pulls off a massive win over the Wizards to boost their playoff hopes, their leading scorer from 2007, Maykel Galindo, is set to return from injury. Galindo hasn't scored since March and has missed a majority of the season after getting surgery for a sports hernia. Click here to read more.

Yesterday afternoon, the Seattle Sounders of the USL were eliminated in the quarter-finals of the USL First Division Playoffs by the Montréal Impact. Seattle Sounders FC will join Major League Soccer for 2009, meaning the current Sounders will not continue in the USL. Sounders FC currently have three players signed: Kasey Keller, Sanna Nyassi, and Sebastien Le Toux.

The MVP Question

The season is winding down and the discussion of who the League MVP should be has become one of the hot topics in the world of Major League Soccer. Who would you vote as your League MVP?

Two players have emerged as front runners - Guillermo Barros Schelotto of the Columbus Crew and Landon Donovan of the Los Angeles Galaxy.

For me, the choice is easy. Guillermo Barros Schelotto has not only had a fantastic season by his own high standards, but he has also improved his teammates and helped Columbus get to the top of the league. The Argentine playmaker has 6 goals and 18 assists. When you look at how Columbus has turned its fortunes around, Schelotto has been at the heart of it.

Despite Landon Donovan's 19 goals, the Los Angeles Galaxy have struggled mightily this season. He may be having the best individual season of any player in the league, but he has not helped bring his team to the top of the table. An MVP not only has a phenomenal season by his own standards, but he also helps his team and improves the overall quality of his side. Landon Donovan has not done this for the Galaxy.

Who else might be up for consideration? Possibly Cuauhtémoc Blanco of the Chicago Fire, or Shalrie Joseph of the New England Revolution.

In the end though, Guillermo Barros Schelotto deserves it. One thing that you might find interesting is that he wasn't involved in the All-Star team. How often does a league MVP not feature with the All-Stars?

What do you think? Schelotto or Donovan? Anyone else?

MLS Week 27 Recap

There were a couple very interesting results in Major League Soccer this weekend. Aside from our 1-1 draw with Houston, there were four other matches on the day. Here is what happened in MLS this weekend.

Colorado Rapids 5 - 4 New York Red Bulls

It's a rare occasion when your offense provides you with 4 goals and you still lose the game. Juan Carlos Osario was feeling that frustration last night. Spurred by a Conor Casey hat-trick, the Rapids continued their winning streak to three games and are making a serious push for the playoffs. Click here for a match report.

Columbus Crew 1 - 0 New England Revolution

The Crew could have very well locked up the Supporters Shield in their 1-0 away win at Gillette Stadium on Saturday. Chad Marshall scored a powerful header before Frankie Hejduk was sent off for the Crew. Columbus held firm though, and beat the Revolution for the second time this month. Click here for a match report.

Real Salt Lake 3 - 2 San Jose Earthquakes

Real Salt Lake halted the Quakes eight-match unbeaten run on Saturday night. Darren Huckerby scored two for San Jose while Real Salt Lake got two from Yura Movsisyan and a fantastic winner from a free kick from Javier Morales. Click here for a match report.

Kansas City Wizards 1 - 2 Chivas USA

Sasha Victorine came back to haunt his old side by notching the match winner against the Wizards at the Home Depot Center. Josh Wolff scored a bicycle kick for the Wizards and Alecko Eskandarian scored the Goats' first goal. Click here for a match report.

FC Dallas 3 - 0 DC United

The lone match on Sunday put FC Dallas against DC United at Pizza Hut Park. Andre Rocha, Jeff Cunningham, and Kenny Cooper all scored for the Hoops while Jaime Moreno saw red for DC United. Click here for a match report.

Toronto FC 1 - 1 Houston Dynamo - Match Report

Brief Synopsis

A horrendous own goal by Hunter Freeman gifted Houston a first half lead that was canceled out in the second half by Marvell Wynne. We seemed to be step for step with Houston for the first little bit and created several shots and opportunities in the early going. A simple miscommunication between Greg Sutton and Hunter Freeman meant we conceded an own goal about as laughable as James Riley's was earlier this year for San Jose. We looked out of sorts for the little bit, and it wasn't until the second half that Marvell Wynne gave us something to cheer about. His first career goal gave us a 1-1 draw with the defending champions.

Starting Eleven and Player Ratings

We started off the match in a 3-5-2 but switched partway through to a standard 4-4-2. After we scored, we switched back to the 3-5-2 again. Here is how we started and how I think each player performed.

GK: Greg Sutton - 6 - I would say he's partly to blame for the own goal, but he had a solid match otherwise.
RB: Hunter Freeman - 4 - That own goal was terrible, and besides that, he didn't really do that much. He can do better.
CB: Tyrone Marshall - 5 - He followed up last week's debacle with a performance that wasn't too improved.

LB: Kevin Harmse - 6 - Harmsey did okay. He was playing out of position in either formation and never really looked horrible. I'd be interested to see him play CB again.
RM: Marvell Wynne - 8 - He was deservedly the Man of the Match. If ever there was a way to score a first career goal, he did it in some style.
CDM: Carl Robinson - 7 - He didn't stand out but he definitely wasn't poor. A pretty standardly solid match for him.
CM: Rohan Ricketts - 6 - He didn't look very good in the 3-5-2 but was pretty evident on the wing in the 4-4-2.
CM: Amado Guevara - 6 - He tested Onstad with a couple of nice shots today but had a lot of passes cut out by defenders.
LM: Jim Brennan - 6 - He didn't impress me today. He had a couple crosses that sailed overtop of everyone. That said, he wasn't bad.
FW: Danny Dichio - 4 - He didn't play well at all today. He could just be rusty after coming back from his concussion, but we know he can do better.
FW: Chad Barrett - 5 - He didn't have one of his better matches either. Numerous scoring chances went high or wide for Chad.

SUB: Johann Smith - 6 - He came on for Ricketts in the second half. His pace is his best asset as he can seemingly just run through players. He is going to be a star in MLS.
SUB: Ibee Ibrahim - NR
SUB: Jarrod Smith - NR

Final Thoughts

It wasn't the result we were looking for, though it easily could have been. We came out very flat at the beginning of the match but sorted things out and ended up stride for stride with the Dynamo.

The own goal really killed our spirits though, both on and off the field. I think that from the time the goal was conceded to the time Wynne scored, the stadium was the quietest it's been all season. It seemed like our free-fall out of the playoffs had hit rock bottom. Seats were empty, the supporters section was quiet, and Houston was dominating us. Thankfully, it didn't last.

Before we conceded and after we scored, though, the atmosphere was great. The folks down in the 111/112/113 had some great chants. The one mocking Pat Onstad was pure class - well done. The "Forza TO" is starting to come along as well. The harmony has been off all season long but it's finally sounding how it should. There were two banners that our front office probably took note of. One said "Mo must Go" and the other said "Fire the Liar." It will be interesting to see if there is any response to this.

Congratulations to the happy couple, as well. For those of you who missed it, someone proposed to their girlfriend (now fiancée) right in front of section 110. A "she said yes" chant broke out soon after and gave us something to laugh about after that horrific goal we saw.

Today's attendance was announced at around 20,067 I believe. If you looked around the stadium though, there definitely wasn't that many spectators there. Perhaps MLSE will see that we aren't the Leafs - if we don't win, people won't come.

Marvell Wynne emerged as the Man of the Match in the second half. I can remember he shut down De Rosario in our own 18 yard box and later blew past him and scored. What a goal it was, too. It went straight down the middle and looped over Onstad, and was shot with his weaker left foot. It was nice to have something to cheer about today. Congratulations on your first career goal, Marvell. It's been a long time coming.

Speaking of De Rosario, I had an interesting conversation with one of his uncles before kick off. I talked with him about the potential of DeRo coming here and whether he wants to come or not. I'm not going to write what his responses were, but I'll tell you, there is something going on.

I think overall we can be pleased with a draw against the champions, but given our current situation, it's not as pleasing. If we were a lock for the playoffs, drawing with Houston would be seen as an accomplishment, but since we needed a win, we have virtually accomplished nothing.

MLS Week 27

There is a full slate of matches in Major League Soccer this weekend. One match is of course in the books. The Chicago Fire beat the LA Galaxy 3-1 at Toyota Park on Thursday night.

The spotlight for many of us will be on BMO Field for our match against the Houston Dynamo. The playoff race is heating up all over the league, though, and this weekend's matches could be detrimental to the success or failure of numerous clubs. Here is what is on tap in MLS this weekend.

Columbus Crew @ New England Revolution - 7:30 PM, MLS Live TV

A top-of-table clash puts the Crew against the Revs at Gillette Stadium. New England will be looking to avenge a 4-0 embarrassment suffered at the hands of the Crew in Columbus just a few weeks ago.

Colorado Rapids @ New York Red Bulls - 7:30 PM, MLS Live TV

The Red Bulls are on pace for the post season while the Rapids have been on a good run of form as of late. Colorado needs to keep getting points if they hope to sneak into the playoffs.

Real Salt Lake @ San Jose Earthquakes - 10:00 PM

Two clubs heading in opposite directions meet at Buckshaw Stadium in San Jose. San Jose has been flying high as of late and are unbeaten in nine, meanhwile Real Salt Lake are on a bit of a free-fall after once topping the Western Conference.

Kansas City Wizards @ Chivas USA - 10:30 PM

In a massive match for both of these sides, the Wizards take on the Goats at the Home Depot Center. Kansas City will be looking to gain some ground on DC meanwhile Chivas will hope to widen the gap between them and the trailing pack.

DC United @ FC Dallas - 3:00 PM, Sunday

The lone Sunday match of the weekend has a struggling DC United away to the Hoops at Pizza Hut Park. FC Dallas will be full of confidence after a 4-1 away win in Chicago last weekend where DC will hope to regain their form after losing 5-2 to the Galaxy.

SBI: John Carver to Newcastle United

Ives' morning ticker today mentions the latest news out of Newcastle United. Joe Kinnear has been hired as Magpies' boss on an interim basis, and it is expected that Kevin Keegan will make his return to as bench-boss when the club is sold. Ives also suggests that Allan Shearer will be given a role in the club.

He ends by setting 7:1 odds on John Carver leaving us to return to Newcastle this winter.

I'm going to stir the put a little. According to Mistake by the Lake, former Canadian men's national team manager, Holger Osieck, recently took in our 3-1 loss to Chivas USA. Perhaps there is something going on behind the scenes?

Carver said in his media scrum on Wednesday that he has no plans on leaving anytime soon. Is he going to leave? What do you think?

Toronto FC v. Houston Dynamo - Match Preview

A win against the Houston Dynamo on Saturday could give our slim playoff hopes a slight lift. Houston started the season slow but has since re-established themselves as the best in the West.

What: Toronto FC v. Houston Dynamo
Where: BMO Field, Toronto, ON
When: 3:30 PM
TV: CBC Sports

Last Meeting

We last played Houston on June 8 in a 3-1 loss at Robertson Stadium. Dwayne De Rosario opened the scoring just before halftime and Brian Ching scored a brace in the second half. Jeff Cunningham scored a late consolation goal for us in the 71st minute.

Houston Dynamo Player to Watch

Houston's main man needs no introduction. Dwayne De Rosario is a proven MLS star, and the Toronto native will be keen to impress in front of his hometown supporters. De Ro has won three MLS Cups with San Jose and Houston and could very well be on pace for a fourth this season. Could this be De Rosario's last appearance in Toronto in a Dynamo uniform? Given Mo Johnston's recent comments about looking for a Canadian designated player, I would not be surprised to see the playmaker wearing Toronto FC red next season.

Predicted Starting Eleven

John Carver mentioned this week in an interview that we've been left exposed on occasion when he pairs Amado Guevara with Carl Robinson in the centre of midfield. I would expect him to add in a fifth midfielder and go with a 3-5-2 this weekend. Here is my predicted starting eleven:

----------------Sutton-----------------
--Wynne-----Marshall------Brennan--
-----Robinson---------Rosenlund------
Freeman-----------------------Ricketts
---------------Guevara----------------
--------Barrett--------Dichio----------

Predicted Result

I'd love to say I see us winning this one, but I don't. Houston has picked up a lot of momentum heading into the end of the season. I'm going to be optimistic and predict a 1-1 draw. Let's hope Dichio can mark his return to the starting eleven with a goal.

For the match preview from MLSnet.com, click here.

Friday Morning News and Notes

Carlos Ruiz' knee injury isn't as serious as we feared, but it will still force him out of tomorrow's clash with Houston. Click here to read about it. An MRI showed that Ruiz simply has a misaligned kneecap.

Is a Salary Cap increase coming? MLS Rumors appears to think so. Click here to read about it. Apparently Major League Soccer officials are meeting to discuss increasing it to about $3.8-$4.6 million. They will also be discussing the possibility of a single table and an apertura/clausura schedule.

Last night's match between the Chicago Fire and Los Angeles Galaxy wasn't the offensive shootout I had hoped for, but it was still an entertaining match. Chris Rolfe scored two goals and Blanco scored the other for Chicago while Eddie Lewis scored his first MLS goal for LA. Click here for a match report.

You may remember we had former Hibernian and Scotland international midfielder Brian Kerr on trial a number of weeks ago. The BBC is reporting that he has opted to sign with giant-killers Brighton and Hove Albion.

MLS Primetime Thursday - Chicago Fire v. Los Angeles Galaxy

The Los Angeles Galaxy visit Toyota Park on MLS Primetime to take on the Chicago Fire tonight on ESPN2. Click here for a match preview from MLS.

A stream for the match can be found here.

At this stage in the season, every match for the Galaxy is a must win as they look to push on to the playoffs, while the Fire will look to break out of a brief two-match losing streak.

With designated players and star strikers on display for either side tonight, this has the makings of an entertaining offensive shootout. That said, the last meeting between the two sides resulted in a 1-0 win for Chicago in Bruce Arena's coaching debut for the Galaxy. John Thorrington scored the lone goal in that match. For entertainment's sake, lets hope there are more goals tonight.

Who's going to shine tonight - Blanco or Beckham, Donovan of McBride? Will the Galaxy have a chance at reaching the playoffs if they don't win this one?

Thursday's News and Notes

It would appear Danny Dichio is fit enough to start in place of Carlos Ruiz. TorontoFC.ca talks about it here. The big man has been struggling for the majority of the season with concussion related injuries.

According to this article, you should take the train to BMO Field in Saturday. The Clothing Show is at the Better Living Centre and the Psychic Expo is at the Queen Elizabeth Exhibit Hall. Parking spots will likely be few and far between, so hop on the GO if you get the chance.

The issue of League MVP has become a hot topic this week. The Houston Chronicle is claiming that Guillermo Barros Schelotto deserves the award over Landon Donovan, meanwhile Soccer By Ives is looking for your input on who should get the award.

Ives also made an interesting point in his Morning Ticker today. In the CONCACAF Champions League, the USL clubs are showing up the MLS clubs. Overall, USL clubs are 5-0-3 in the competition, where MLS clubs are 0-5-2.

That's all for now. Remember to check back around 9:00 tonight for a link to a stream of the match between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the Chicago Fire. It's shaping up to be a good one.

CCL: Montréal Impact 0 - 0 Atlante FC

The Montréal Impact continue to surprise in the CONCACAF Champions League. The lone Canadian side in the competition managed a 0-0 draw against Mexican giants Atlante FC. Click here for a match report from CONCACAF.

From what I can gather, Atlante fielded a reserve side, and visibly underestimated their counterparts. The Impact had the better chances throughout the match but Atlante's defense held strong. Matt Jordan was seldomly tested in the Montréal's net, as his team did not look second best on the night.

I was only able to see bits and pieces of the match, but Sandro Grande appeared to be immense in the middle of the pitch for the Impact. He looked very comfortable against the Mexicans and seemed to be at the heart of every one of his team's attacks.

Elsewhere in Group C, CD Olimpia beat Joe Public FC 3-1 at Marvin Lee Stadium in Trinidad and Tobago. Montréal currently top the Group C table with 1 win and 1 draw, ahead of Atlante on goal difference. Olimpia follows in third with 1 win and 1 loss, with Joe Public at the bottom of the group's table with 2 losses.

If you saw the match, please leave a comment with your thoughts.

Our Designated Player

It's no secret that both John Carver and Mo Johnston are looking for a designated player for next season. In fact, John Carver has guaranteed he will be here for First Kick 2009. Mo Johnston has also hinted that he is looking for a Canadian DP.

When thinking about which Canadian would qualify as a potential designated player, four players come to mind: Dwayne De Rosario, Atiba Hutchinson, Julian De Guzman, and Paul Stalteri.

De Guzman will come to Toronto FC - but not at this point in his career. It would be a stupid move for him to make. Atiba Hutchinson is likely in the same boat as De Guzman, so I will not be expecting him. Paul Stalteri is a possibility given the fact that he is currently out-of-favour at Tottenham Hotspur and looking for a new club. Should we use our DP spot on a defender though? I'm not so sure.

John Carver described Juan Pablo Angel as an ideal DP. Angel signed for New York at the beginning of the 2007 season at 31 years old. He will be likely be at New York for several years yet and has had a significant impact with the club.


So, Carver wants a DP around the age of 30 who is likely an attacker. Mo Johnston has said that he'd prefer a Canadian. Only one option stands out - Dwayne De Rosario.

James Sharman at the Score wrote about this possibility a number of weeks ago, and Mo Johnston has been vocally keen on bringing De Rosario to Toronto. After the All-Star game, Ives Galarcep mentioned that he would bet money on De Ro coming home by the start of next season.

Is De Rosario worth the spot though? I would say he is. I would much rather see our DP spot used on someone who is going to make a difference at the club for several seasons than a big name player who will sell shirts for a year. When I look at Claudio Lopez and the Kansas City Wizards, I cannot help but shake my head. Lopez is 36 years old, and despite being a "big name" player, has failed to have the impact a DP should. Though De Rosario is not a big name player outside of MLS, within the league he is a game breaker. He would certainly be a hit at Toronto FC, after all, he is from Scarborough, and would likely want his hometown side to succeed.

If Mo Johnston uses our DP spot on Dwayne De Rosario this winter, I will not be complaining. What do you think? Is DeRo worth the DP spot? Should Mo look outside of MLS for our DP?

Ockham's Razor Prevails

So, I've done some thinking. Ockham's razor is prevailing for me yet again. I am going to get rid of the transfer centre so that I can keep everything on one page.

Carver puts his job on the line

Dean McNulty has written this article for the Sun. If you didn't like John Carver before, this will either change your mind or cement your opinion even further.

Carver has basically said that if the team doesn't play better in the next five matches, he will not be surprised if he ends up losing his job as coach. This could end up hurting him in the end, but it does show that Carver is passionate about success and that he wants our club to succeed in MLS.

He was understandably disappointed at this past Saturday's effort in Kansas City. With so much at stake, the team showed very little drive and motivation. He makes it clear that as well as his own job on the line, every player's job is on the line as well.

McNulty makes a very good point about the playoff race as well. We are 6 points back of DC United for the last spot. DC are on a four-match winless streak and have 5 Champions League matches on top of their 5 remaining MLS matches. If we can win, the match congestion might prove too much for DC. That said, Kansas City has the jump on us in the East after last weekend's match, and Colorado, San Jose, Los Angeles, and Dallas all look poised for a late playoff push in the West.

In other news and notes, here are some other interesting Toronto FC and MLS related stories that have surfaced today...

TorontoFC.ca - Sutton expects Reds to improve
"Extra Time" by Nigel Reed - Slow progress for Toronto FC
Soccer365 - Still Not Getting the Message
ksl.com - Real Salt Lake stadium opens

CCL: Montréal Impact v. Atlante FC

The Montréal Impact play Mexican giants Atlante in the CONCACAF Champions League on Wednesday night at the Saputo Stadium.

The clubs are tied at the top of Group C on three points after winning their first group matches. Atlante squeaked a 1-0 win over CD Olympia of Honduras, while the Impact beat Joe Public FC of Trinidad and Tobago 2-0. For a match preview from the Impact's website, click here. For one from the CONCACAF website, click here.

The match will be aired live on cbcsports.ca and CBC Bold.

SI.com - Galaxy Want Another Rules Rewrite

Check out this article on SI.com by Grant Wahl.

It appears that Tim Leiweke (CEO of the Anschutz Entertainment Group, who own the LA Galaxy) is trying to change the Designated Player rule so that so that any DP would NOT count against the salary cap. Right now, a designated player counts as $400,000 against the cap.

The Los Angeles Galaxy took a risk in spending big bucks to sign an international star like David Beckham. What Leiweke basically says is, "Look at what Beckham is doing for the league. Why should we be penalized for this?"

I'm going to be cynical here. I don't think Leiweke would even bring up this issue if his club was atop the table right now. For the Galaxy to blame their lack of success this season on how much David Beckham counts against their salary cap is assanine.

The Los Angeles Galaxy have struggled this year because they have very little talent in the middle of the pitch. Their strikers, wing midfielders, and wing fullbacks are all very capable players in MLS. Beyond those players, the talent level drops dramatically. For the amount of talent a player like David Beckham brings to the table, the $400,000 looks like very little.

What do you think? Should MLS bend the rules again for the Galaxy? Should DPs count against the salary cap or not?

Striker Ruiz Set to Miss Saturday's Match

It would appear newly-acquired striker Carlos Ruiz is set to miss Saturday's match against the Houston Dynamo. Click here to read the article released by TorontoFC.ca.

According to Ruiz, this is a recurring problem and he just wants to find out what is wrong.

Tuesday Morning News and Notes

Good morning.

No major news about Toronto FC this morning. Dean McNulty followed up on "Kicking out at Hooliganism" with an article called "TFC fans under fire." Click here to read it.

Landon Donovan picked up his fourth Player of the Week honours after scoring 3 goals and 1 assist on Saturday. Click here to read about it. Here are some other articles from around Major League Soccer that you might find interesting...

MLSnet.com - Davis: West takes stand on who's best
MLSnet.com - Week in review: Seismic Shakeup
Northernstar.info - Lack of Popularity for American Soccer
Majorleaguesoccertalk.com - MLSLive.tv to be free next season?

Let's NOT Bow to Beckham, MLS

Take a look at the video at the end of this post.

In the 63rd minute of Saturday's match between the Los Angeles Galaxy and DC United, Marc Burch was given a straight red for the foul in the video. DC was down 3-2 at the time and were very much still in the game.

Let's be honest here, that foul is at worst a yellow card. It was a late tackle and he did miss the ball, but it's not a red card. Not even David Beckham thought it was one. According to Marc Burch, "It's not a red card. He's straight up and he went and told the ref that. It's a foul. I don't know how he ended up hitting the sign boards, because I didn't even run into him. I swung for the ball and hit the back of his leg. It comes with bringing him to the league, you know."

I can guarantee you that if that challenge had been on Ante Jazic, or Chris Klein, or anyone else on the Galaxy, a red card would not have been issued.

Major League Soccer needs to be responsible for making sure its officials do not make exceptions for certain players, in this case, David Beckham. If Becks gets injured from a foul, the league will keep going. The league should rescind the card and revoke Burch's suspension.

Slow Day

It's been a slow day news-wise in the world of Toronto FC. Perhaps the notion is that our playoff hopes are done, so why bother talking about them? Regardless, here are a few articles that you might find interesting...

TorontoFC.ca - Reds back in training
Toronto Sun - Kicking out at hooliganism
Seattle Post-Intelligencer - Expansion decisions could help take MLS to next level

Enjoy.

Major League Soccer - This is Our League

World class football is on display every weekend over in Europe and down in South America. Chelsea and Manchester United, Europe's two best clubs last season, battled it out at Stamford Bridge on Sunday in one of the biggest fixtures on the Premier League calendar. Werder Bremen crushed Bayern Munich in a clash of titans in the Bundesliga, meanwhile Ajax drew national rivals Feyenoord in Holland as well this weekend. These three are just a few of many marquee matches that took place.

Another match that probably flew under most peoples' radar took place in Major League Soccer on Saturday night. The two most storied sides in the history of the young league battled it out at the Home Depot Center on Fox Soccer Channel. The Los Angeles Galaxy and DC United put on a show in a very entertaining match that saw the Galaxy win 5-2.

I can understand why this fixture wouldn't be given a significant look by many of us. No one (aside from Alexei Lalas) is dumb enough to say that MLS is a world class league at this point. Being TFC supporters, why watch mediocre football that doesn't involve our home side when we can watch the world's best battle it out across the pond? Let me explain why I think you might just want to follow MLS a little closer.

Major League Soccer needs support and publicity. The league is working hard to move forward and to improve, but when people brush it aside as being "second tier", it deters from the improvement. If this league is ever going to get better, we are going to have to support it, and that goes beyond supporting Toronto FC. I'm not suggesting you pick another team to support on top of Toronto - I'm not an idiot. When Toronto plays at home at 3:30 in the afternoon, why not go home and watch another match on MLS Live TV that night? If you have Fox Soccer Channel, get some together with some friends and watch a match. Get your friends interested in MLS. Let's not just have a one-sided approach. I'll support Toronto forever, but in doing so I will not turn off the television when they aren't involved in an MLS match. A one-sided approach will hinder the league's growth.

Every Sunday during the NFL season, there are dozens of television channels that show multiple games and highlight shows. There is a buzz around the league as the star players on display in numerous games throughout the day, and we all watch parts of numerous games throughout the day. Why can't we have the same attitude toward Major League Soccer in the summer? We need to create that buzz when Saturday comes. When our club is playing, and there are other matches that will effect our place in the table, we need to be upbeat and excited about it.

As supporters, we need to come together as one. I'm not saying that we need to make friends with Columbus' supporters or Red Bulls' supporters. I'm saying we need to support other clubs' supporters in their efforts to promote and publicize their respective club. The Colorado Rapids' average attendance last season was 14,479. Their stadium seats 18,500. We could bash their supporters for having an average 22% of the stadium empty every match, or we could encourage them in getting those numbers up, and spreading the word locally. Support is not a question for us in Toronto, but we need to encourage other supporters in their support.

Together, we can push MLS to the top. It won't happen quickly and it won't be easy. We can't just sit back and wait for it to happen, though. We have to act. Major League Soccer is OUR league, so let's make it the best we can. We may not see eye to eye with everyone on who we support, but we can see eye to eye on what we support.

Want proof? Check out what "Sounder at Heart" has to say about the issue over in Seattle. Click here to read his thoughts.

Should Mo Johnston be Feeling the Heat?

At the end of last season, Mo Johnston promised improvement. A dismal 6-17-7 record in our expansion season left us looking for answers. It wasn't until the third week in this season that we saw those answers. After two consecutive losses, a 3-2 win at the Home Depot Centre over the Galaxy set us on a phenomenal run of form where we went 6-2-3.

Since then, we've slipped from third in the East to last in the league and lost the Canadian Championship on top of all this. We've seen Laurent Robert signed for the league maximum $330,000 and released just 4 months later. We've seen Jeff Cunningham's lackluster and heartless performances. We've seen Marco Velez sent off in a match where he was our only defender present. We've seen our strike force lead by a 16 year old for several matches in July.

Mo brought in Robert. He brought in Cunningham. He brought in Velez. He left us in such dire straights our attack was lead by young Ibbe Ibrahim. Isn't he supposed to be an excellent judge of talent?

There is one thing I cannot fault Mo on, though, and that is trading. He got us Carlos Ruiz for virtually nothing, though, given Ruiz's 3 performances with us, you'd think we overpaid. He stole Marvell Wynne from the Red Bulls though, and recently acquired Johann Smith, who could very well tear up MLS in years to come. As well, we have 3 first round draft picks this year.

Is this enough, though? Despite some improvements, we are still last in the league, just as we were at the same time last season. Is it time for Mo to go, or do we just need more time to establish ourselves in this league? Let me know your thoughts.

MLS Sunday Round Up

There was, of course, only one match today in Major League Soccer. The Brimstone Cup Finale saw FC Dallas crush the Chicago Fire 4-1 at Toyota Park. Jeff Cunningham managed to somehow score a brace with Bruno Guarda and Aaron Pitchkolan adding the Hoops' other two. Brian McBride scored a late consolation goal for the Fire in injury time. Click here for a match report.

Rivalries Renewed in Brimstone Cup Finale

FC Dallas visit Toyota Park this afternoon to take on the Chicago Fire in the Brimstone Cup Finale. Click here for a match preview from MLS. The two teams last met on June 15 at Pizza Hut Park in a match where Kenny Cooper's 17th minute goal proved to be the winner. FC Dallas beat Chicago 1-0 on the day.

Since then, FC Dallas have (similarly to us) fallen by the wayside and will need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Fire will be in the playoffs and will be looking to establish themselves as MLS Cup contenders as the season closes.

The match kicks off at 3:00 PM eastern time.

MLS Saturday Round Up

We all know what happened between us and the Wizards last night. Here is a summary of what happened elsewhere in MLS.

DC United 2 - 5 Los Angeles Galaxy

After falling behind 1-0 in just the second minute, the LA Galaxy exploded for 5 goals against DC United. Landon Donovan was a hat-trick hero on the night and added an assist on top of that. The match fell out of DC's reach when Marc Burch was sent off in the 63rd minute for a foul on Galaxy captain David Beckham. The Galaxy ended their 12 match winless streak in fine fashion, winning 5-2 in front of a sold out Home Depot Centre. Click here for a match report.

New England Revolution 1 - 1 Colorado Rapids

The Rapids kept their faint playoff hopes alive by holding the Revolution to a 1-1 draw at home. Colin Clark scored for the Rapids in the 42nd minute before Kenny Mansally equalized just five minutes into the second half. I find it a little interesting that Christian Gomez continues to be a fixture on Colorado's bench. Gomez was acquired before the season from DC United in exchange for the Rapid's DP spot. I figured he would flourish in Colorado but I guess it just hasn't happened for him. Click here for a match report.

Chivas USA 1 - 0 Real Salt Lake

Alecko Eskandarian scored the lone goal to give the Goats a win in the last MLS match ever played at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Salt Lake will move into their new SSS on October 9 when they play the Red Bulls. Canadian Will Johnson played a full 90 minutes but was unable to spark any offense for his club as Chivas won 1-0. Click here for a match report.

Toronto FC 0 - 2 Kansas City Wizards - Match Report

Brief Synopsis

It was do or die in Kansas City tonight in our third meeting of the season with the Wizards. Our road woes and defensive inabilities let us down yet again as we lost 2-0, virtually eliminating our playoff hopes. The match was tightly contested in the midfield for the better part of 60 minutes before the Wizards were awarded a penalty on a challenge by Tyrone Marshall. Jack Jewsbury scored the penalty putting Kansas City up 1-0. John Carver was sent off after the goal, probably for dissent. The situation got worse for us fifteen minutes later when Kevin Souter put the Wizards up 2-0. Souter beat Tyrone Marshall to a cross and cheekily chipped the ball over Greg Sutton. We were unable to answer in the next 10 minutes and the match finished with a 2-0 score.

Starting Eleven and Player Ratings

We lined up the same way we did last weekend. Here are my player ratings (yes, Rohan, I'll remember you this time):

GK: Greg Sutton - 7 - He guessed right on the penalty but looked out of sorts on the second. I can't fault him for tonight's loss.
RB: Marvell Wynne - 6 - He was pretty invisible tonight, likely due to the small pitch hindering his runs forward. He was still pretty effective defensively.
CB: Tyrone Marshall - 3 - He conceded a penalty and looked foolish when Souter beat him on the second goal.
CB: Julius James - 5 - Aside from getting beaten just before the penalty, he had a pretty solid match at the back.
LB: Jim Brennan - 6 - Like Wynne, we didn't see him much. The small field really hurt his overlapping runs as he failed to establish himself in the match.
RM: Hunter Freeman - 5 - He's a solid young player but wasn't on his game tonight. He had numerous simple passes that went astray.
CM: Carl Robinson - 7 - Robbo gave his usual solid performance. He wasn't outstanding but did the job, in the middle at least.
CM: Amado Guevara - 6 - He had our two best chances tonight. He wasn't able to lead our attack tonight but you could still tell he's one of our better players.
LM: Rohan Ricketts - 7 - Provided several crosses and tried to carry us forward as best he could tonight.
FW: Carlos Ruiz - 4 - He simply has to be better.
FW: Chad Barrett - 5 - His first touch let him down a bunch of times tonight. His last two outings haven't been his best.

SUB: Ibbe Ibrahim - 4 - He virtually had no effect on the match after he came in.
SUB: Danny Dichio - 6 - His presence lifts the team but he needs more support to make an impact.
SUB: Johann Smith - 7 - He should be starting. This guy's blazing speed was on show yet again and he has the potential to tear up this league.

Final Thoughts

Our playoff hopes are no longer fading - they are gone. We aren't mathematically out but it would take winning all of our five remaining matches and hoping for other results to get us in. The fact that we've only won twice since May has really hit hard. That is two wins in three and a half months, both of which were against the same team - the Rapids. Earlier in the season, I expected a win every time we took to the pitch. Nowadays, I hope for a win but expect the opposite.

Tyrone Marshall had an absolute nightmare tonight. He conceded the penalty for their first and was beaten to the ball on their second goal. The tackle that lead to the penalty was absolutely aweful. John Carver was sent off after the shot, likely for dissent. When he sees the replay he'll realize it was a definite penalty. On Kansas City's second, Marshall looked less than second best as Kevin Souter beat him to the ball.

I'm not sure whether to be mad our happy that John Carver was sent to the dressing room. I could be mad because he's been sent off in our most important match of the year, or I could be happy that we have a coach who gets so passionate about his side in this situation. Either way, the image of Carver walking down that black tunnel was pure irony.

Did anyone else notice that the referee was the same man who did us in against FC Dallas at the beginning of August? I'm sure his fuse with Carver was pretty short after that experience. Maybe that would explain JC's smurk as he left the bench.

I can remember Gerry Dobson mentioning that Kansas City lose no one to international duty on FIFA dates. We all know how we lost 11 players to internationals just two weeks ago. How, then, did we have a problem with Kansas City tonight? We are a team with 11 international players who just lost to a team with none. Mo, if you're reading this, can you explain this to me?

The pitch in that stadium is an absolute joke, and don't let get me started on the park itself. How is this the Wizards' best option for a home ground? I'm not even sure that field is regulation size. Watching a match on that pitch is almost as painful as watching one with American Football lines on the pitch.

I'm not exactly sure why they are planning to build a new soccer stadium for the Wizards. All they need is a soccer pitch at a community park with a bleacher for "the Cauldron". I could hear the players talking the entire game. Do you want to know why people disregard MLS in Europe? It's because of this pathetic support. Don Garber: Send this franchise across the state to St. Louis where people will actually care about their side.

We'll be playing for pride in our last few matches and once we're mathematicaly eliminated we'll be experimenting with some younger players. We've proved we can play with the league's best this season. We just haven't done it on a consistent basis.

Match Night: Toronto FC @ Kansas City Wizards

Less than half an hour to kickoff and the lineups are shown here on the MLS match tracker. Looks like we're going with the same lineup I predicted in my match preview.

-------------------Sutton-----------------------
---Wynne----James----Marshall----Brennan---
------------------Robinson----------------------
-Ricketts------------------------------Freeman-
------------------Guevara-----------------------
---------Barrett-------------Ruiz---------------

I'm not sure how the Wizards are going to lineup, but here is their starting eleven: Kevin Hartman, Michael Harrington, Abe Thompson, Jimmy Conrad, Jack Jewsbury, Josh Wolff, Roger Espinoza, Tyson Wahl, Herculez Gomez, Davy Arnaud, and Jonathan Leathers. Wizards' DP Claudio Lopez is on the bench.

The match is live on Rogers Sportsnet at 8:00. Click here for the match tracker. Enjoy!

Some Pre-Match Notes

No lineups have been released yet with just over an hour to kickoff. Here are some pre-match notes to think about before the match begins.

We're playing in a Minor League ballpark today...

I'm sure many of you already know, but if you don't, the Wizards play at Community America Ballpark, home of the Kansas City T-Bones. They previously played at Arrowhead Stadium, home of the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs. The smaller stadium creates an intimate atmosphere, but they really have to do better. The worst part is they struggle to sell out the ballpark, which has a capacity just over 10,000.

Claudio Lopez might be the worst DP in MLS right now...

This past off season, the Wizards added Argentine legend Claudio Lopez to replace the departed Eddie Johnson. Lopez will earn $900,000 this season, making him their designated player. An opening day goal looked promising, but the forward has scored just 4 goals and added just 4 assists. When you look at Juan Pablo Angel's contributions up for New York, you'd think a DP forward should be better than 4 goals.

Carl Robinson is listed as "questionable" for the match...

If you read the match preview from MLS, you will have noticed that Robbo is questionable for tonight's match. He was listed with an apparent "quadriceps" injury. John Carver mentioned he took a knock against Columbus in training this week, so this could be the injury in question. I wouldn't expect Robbo to be sitting this one out. He looked pretty up for it in his video on TFC TV.

We're really not as far out of it as it seems...

Six points does seem like a lot, but when you think about how a win tonight followed up with a DC United loss could leave us only three points out, the playoffs seem a little closer. It's pretty optimistic, but let's not give up. Let's get behind our boys as the season winds down.

That's all for now. Enjoy the match. I will have a link to a stream of the DC United/LA Galaxy match after.

Chelsea v. Manchester United LIVE on the Score

Football fans worldwide will have their eyes on Stamford Bridge tomorrow morning as Chelsea hosts Manchester United, the defending champions. Click here for a match preview from the official website of the Premier League.

The match will be aired LIVE on the Score tomorrow morning at 9:00.

MLS this Weekend

As the season winds down the playoff race continues to heat up. Aside from our massive match in Kansas City tonight, here is what is going on in MLS this weekend.

New England Revolution @ Colorado Rapids - 9:00 PM

New England will make the playoffs and are once again a contender for the MLS Cup. The Rapids have won two in a row and are starting to give their supporters faint playoff hopes. Colorado is currently tied with tied with Chivas for the last playoff spot, but are behind due to goal difference. The Rapids beat the Revs 1-0 at Gillette Stadium earlier this season. Click here for a match preview.

Chivas USA @ Real Salt Lake - 9:00 PM

In a massive Western Conference match the Goats visit RSL tonight. Salt Lake currently occupies the seventh playoff spot meanwhile Chivas is sitting in eighth. This will be looked at as a must win for both sides. I'd give the edge to RSL seeing as they are 7-0-5 at home. Click here for a match preview.

DC United @ LA Galaxy - 10:00 PM

Aside from our own match, this one is massive for us. The Galaxy can do us a huge favour by beating DC United tonight at the Home Depot Centre. A win for us coupled with a DC loss would leave us three points out of the playoffs with five matches remaining. The Galaxy are 0-6-6 in their last 12 matches and even Bruce Arena must be feeling the heat now. Click here for a match preview.

FC Dallas @ Chicago Fire - 3:oo PM, Sunday

The only match on Sunday is at Toyota Park between the Hoops and the Fire. FC Dallas will look at this as a must win for their playoff hopes as they are slowly falling behind in the West. The Fire will likely come second or third in the East and will hope to finish their season in good form. Click here for a match preview.

On a side note, the match between the San Jose Earthquakes and Houston Dynamo at Robertson Stadium in Houston has been postponed due to Hurricane Ike. It has been rescheduled for October 15.

cbcsports.ca: Ricketts Rues Missed Opportunities

John Molinaro wrote another gem today, this time about Rohan Ricketts. Click here to read it. Looks like Ro is still mad about missing that shot against the Revs. Ricketts lives for his football and you can tell he really wants to do big things in his career. He wears his heart on his sleeve and gives 100% every match - he's one of our club's biggest assets.

He talks about how we're creating chances to win games just not finishing. He there is no reason to worry as we are still creating opportunities, we just need to finish clinically. He also mentions he wants to return next season. Good on ya Ro.

Toronto FC v. Kansas City Wizards - Match Preview

With points at a premium, Saturday's match against the Kansas City Wizards is regarded as a must win for Toronto FC. The Wizards are currently 2 points ahead of us in the Eastern Conference, though we have taken 4 points of a possible 6 against them this season.

Who: Toronto FC v. Kansas City Wizards
Where: Community America Ballpark
When: 8:00 PM
TV: Rogers Sportsnet

Last Meeting

We last played the Wizards on July 21 in a 0-0 draw at BMO Field. John Carver elected to keep the same starting eleven that beat Colorado 3-1 the week before, leaving Amado Guevara, Maurice Edu, and Jim Brennan on the bench to start. Shortly after halftime, all three were subbed on and began creating opportunities right away. In the end, neither team could break the deadlock.

Kansas City Wizards Player to Watch

Normally, I would have said Claudio Lopez, but he's been an absolute waste of money as their designated player. I am going to say we have to keep an eye on US international striker Josh Wolff. About six weeks ago he was brought back from Germany to help bolster the Wizards weak attack. He has 2 goals and an assist in 8 matches since his return and he is due a big outing.

Predicted Starting Eleven

Last week I predicted Carver would stick to a 3-5-2 and he went with a 4-4-2. I'm going to guess he'll field a 4-4-2 again this week. I would like to see Johann Smith get the start, as his speed could really be an asset down the left flank. I expect Hunter Freeman to start on the left though and possibly be replaced by Smith. Here is how I think we'll line up:

-------------------Sutton-----------------------
---Wynne----James----Marshall----Brennan---
------------------Robinson----------------------
-Ricketts------------------------------Freeman-
------------------Guevara-----------------------
---------Barrett-------------Ruiz---------------

Predicted Score

I'm sticking with my optimism. I see this as a very winnable away match. I'm going to predict a 2-1 win in a very closely contested match. We both needs the points, and quite frankly, I think that we are a better side.

MLS Primetime: Columbus Crew v. New York Red Bulls

Final Score: Columbus Crew 3 - 1 New York Red Bulls

In a massive Eastern Conference match, the Crew host the Red Bulls on MLS Primetime this week. The Crew can do us a favour by beating the Red Bulls. A win for New York would all but cement their spot in the playoffs, meanwhile the Crew can extend its lead at the top of the table.

You can watch the match online here. If you can't get your stream working, Soccer By Ives will be providing a running commentary here.

Earlier this season, The Red Bulls beat the Crew 2-0 at Giants Stadium. Enjoy the match.

RSL Stadium set for October 9 Opening

This isn't TFC related, but soccer specific stadiums are always a huge step forward for clubs in Major League Soccer.

Real Salt Lake, who currently play at Rice-Eccles Stadium, are set to move in to their new stadium, simply called Real Salt Lake Stadium.

Rice Eccles Stadium is a truly terrible soccer venue. The turf is apparently terrible and there are American football lines on the pitch for every match. RSL's new stadium looks like it will be a very nice place to play at. The stadium will seat roughly 20,000 and cost around $115 million USD.

Click here to read an article about the stadium's opening. Real Salt Lake will take on the New York Red Bulls in its inaugural match at Real Salt Lake Stadium.

It's a slow process but it's only a matter of time before every club in MLS has it's own stadium.

CCL: Montréal Impact 2 - 0 Joe Public FC

Joe Public FC, the team that had no problem with the New England Revolution, could not overcome the Montréal Impact last night at the Stade Saputo. I didn't get a chance to watch a lot of this one. Here is a match report.

After beating the Revs 6-1 on aggregate I thought Joe Public would have no problem with the Impact but our Montréal counterparts continue to surprise.

The Impact's next CCL match is September 24 against Mexico's Atlante.

If you watched the match, please leave a comment with your thoughts so I have an idea of what happened. Thanks.

CCL: Montréal Impact v. Joe Public FC

In their first group match of the CONCACAF Champions League, the Montréal Impact host Trinidad and Tobago's Joe Public FC tonight at the Stade Saputo. Click here to read a match preview from the Impact's official website.

The Impact defeated Real Esteli of Nicaraugua to get to the group stage, meanwhille Joe Public FC beat the New England Revolution to get this far.

The match will be aired live on CBC Bold and cbcsports.ca at 8:00 ET.

cbcsports.ca: Robbo hasn't Given up Hope

It's been a bit of a slow day with regards to TFC news. John Molinaro released this story this morning. It's a pretty interesting read.

Robbo brings things down to earth as he clearly illustrates that he has not given up hope on the playoffs yet, and that he isn't going anywhere anytime soon. It looks like he's happy here in Canada and doesn't plan on any significant changes anytime soon.

www.tfcconnected.com

Good afternoon folks,

In moving forward in my efforts to expand this blog, I registered a nice and shiny new domain name. To access TFC Connected, all you have to do now is type in www.tfcconnected.com.

As well, a simple email address to contact me is now available. Please send any tips, ideas, suggestions, or news stories to ben@tfcconnected.com.

Thanks a lot guys.

Ottawa Launches MLS Expansion Bid

As mentioned last week, Eugene Melnyk held a Press Conference this morning officially launching a bid for an MLS franchise in Ottawa. Click here to check out the official website for the campaign, entitled "Bring the World to Ottawa". Here is a rendering of a potential stadium:

Here are a few articles from today's Press Conference.

- Sportsnet: Melnyk launches bid for MLS franchise
- Reuters: Ottawa launches plant to land MLS franchise
- CBC Sports: Melnyk serious about MLS in Ottawa

David Miller Pushing for Grass at BMO Field

Click here to read an article in the National Post stating that Toronto mayor David Miller is pushing for a grass surface at BMO Field next season. Though he makes no guarantees, it can't hurt to have him on our side here.

Here is a video from Saturday's 1-1 draw with Columbus. Miller's comments come in around the 9:00 mark. The video also has some great footage from the infamous Terry Fox Head Shave as well as the match. Enjoy.

Carver Provides Insight on 2009

Amidst a slow trade deadline day in MLS, a very interesting article surfaced on TorontoFC.ca this afternoon. Click here to read it. It looks like John Carver already has half an eye on next season, while remaining focused on the task at hand this season.

According to the article, as well as this one on CBC Sports, plans are in place to bring in a Designated Player, and we are being guaranteed this player will be here for the start of the 2009 season. Carver says the club is not looking for someone who's just looking to end his career, but someone who will be here for three or four years. He wants to bring in a high quality striker, a high quality midfielder, and a leader at centre back.

I couldn't agree more with what he's looking for. I've said before that we need a big leader in the middle of our defense, and we all know about our need for a big striker. We definitely have some of the pieces in place for the future and it looks like the best is yet to come.

I definitely recommend giving each article a read as they both provide some optimism for our future as a club.

Let's All Laugh at the Wizards

This past weekend the Wizards beat the hapless Galaxy 2-0. Their win and our draw means we are last in the East by two points. Davy Arnaud scored an absolute screamer from 35 yards that should earn MLS Goal of the Week.

The main point I'd like to make though, is the fact that this match was held at Arrowhead Stadium. I can understand why, though. The American "supporters" love the Beckham Brigade. It's getting to be pathetic. People who don't care about their home club will show up in numbers to see Goldenballs and his last place team. American Football lines on the pitch and all, only 26,000 people showed up, as the 80,000 seat stadium still looked empty.

This makes absolutely no sense. I'm going to call out the Wizards' organization on this one. They destroyed the intimate atmosphere of Community America Ballpark (which isn't even acceptable as it is) so that 15,000 extra people who don't give two shits about their own team can come to watch one player.

If the Wizards were going to sellout Arrowhead Stadium, I'd be all for it. They didn't though. They didn't sell out half of it, and they left American Football lines on the pitch. This is ridiculous.

I thought it was bad enough when the Quakes played the Galaxy at the MacAffee Coliseum, however that is a California derby, so it seemingly makes sense.

For the sake of both Major League Soccer and the Kansas City Wizards, they had better hope their proposed Soccer Specific Stadium gets built soon.

More on Brian Kerr

Check out this article from Vital Football, over in the UK. It confirms again that Brian Kerr is on trial with us, apparently keen on a fresh start here in MLS.

Kerr quickly fell out of favour with Hibernian manager Mixu Paatelainen last month and has since been out of the first team. He previously played for Newcastle United (with loan spells at Coventry City and Livingston) and then Motherwell.

Kerr is a free agent so we could sign him any time. On Thursday of last week, I wrote here about an article on TorontoFC.ca mentioned that Kerr had trained with us, and had a later update with a link to this article from BBC Sport. The BBC reported that Kerr is currently in talks with us.

I'll post as soon as I hear any further developments this week.

Toronto FC 1 - 1 Columbus Crew - Match Report

Brief Synopsis

A rare bit of offensive brilliance from Carl Robinson gave us a sixth minute league. Amado Guevara hit a short pass from a free kick to Robbo who one timed a curling shot over Will Hesmer in the Columbus goal. About 5 minutes later, Robbie Rogers went down under a soft challenge from Marvell Wynne in the box. Referee Ricardo Salazar gave Columbus a penalty. Greg Sutton, however, came up trumps with the save of the game. Sutton's save gained even greater importance when Pat Noonan equalized for Columbus around the 30th minute mark. Columbus poured on the pressure in the second half and TFC countered, but the deadlock could not be broken. The match finished 1-1.

Starting Eleven and Player Ratings

I was wrong in my match preview. John Carver started a 4-4-2 for this one, giving new signing Hunter Freeman a start at the right of midfield. Here is how I saw our guys tonight:

GK: Greg Sutton - 9 - On the replay, Noonan's goal looked a little soft, but that penalty save was absolute class. Congratulations on the baby girl.
RB: Marvell Wynne - 8 - I thought Wynne was phenomenal this afternoon. He had the tough task of marking Robbie Rogers and did a great job.
CB: Tyrone Marshall - 6 - He didn't look overly impressive today, though he wasn't bad. Might have closed down on Noonan sooner.
CB: Julius James - 6 - He looked good defensively but so many of his long balls go to no one.
LB: Jim Brennan - 7 - Brennan was very active today. He had many overlapping runs and contributed a lot, both defensively and offensively.
RM: Hunter Freeman - 6 - He looked pretty comfortable out there. He's a solid player who is likely quite versatile.
CM: Carl Robinson - 7 - Robbo's goal was from a hidden genius. He also had a pretty solid game in the centre of the park.
CM: Amado Guevara - 7 - He nearly got the winner on that free-kick, missing by mere inches. I thought he was quite good today.
LM: Rohan Ricketts - 7 - Ricketts gives his heart 100% every game and it's evident on the pitch. Well done Ro.
FW: Carlos Ruiz - 5 - Ruiz was more or less useless today. I was hoping he'd continue his form from this week's internationals, but I guess it wasn't to be.
FW: Chad Barrett - 6 - He didn't have very many opportunities today and his first touch let him down on numerous occasions. Not one of his better outings

SUB: Danny Dichio - 7 - Dichio seems to make things happen one way or another. We had numerous opportunities after he came on.
SUB: Tyler Rosenlund - NR
SUB: Jarrod Smith - NR

Final Thoughts

The good news is we started brightly and got an early lead. The bad news is we were unable to build upon it. Today's result will be looked at as two points lost, not one point earned, as a tie really does nothing for us right now.

Carl Robinson's goal was absolutely sublime. When Guevara played that ball short to Robbo, I cringed, but the second Robbo hit it you knew it was going in. In my mind, definitely a contender for our goal of the season. Apart from his goal, Robbo was his usual solid self in the middle of the field.

Robbie Rogers' dive was terrible and Ricardo Salazar should not have awarded a penalty. I'm sure Columbus fans will disagree, but Sutton's save was pure justice, even though he did leave his line about two seconds before the kick. I'm also sure they will blame the turf for the fact Moreno didn't score.

I think everyone is saying that Carlos Ruiz has to play better. I agree, he simply has to. In 180 minutes for us he has done virtually nothing. His first touch and control is phenomenal, however he hasn't looked liked much of a threat in front of goal so far. I'm not sure if it's a lack of service or what, but we need him to both create opportunities as well as score.

I also thought Johann Smith should have come on in the second half. I'm not sure why Jarrod Smith was put on the field, as he has been more or less useless as of late. Johann is going to be a phenomenal player and his speed could have given Columbus all kinds of problems.

When I look at the way Columbus played in the second half, if they had scored a winner I would not have complained. They were simply better. I can see why they are on top of the league. It pains me to admit it, but I digress - they deserve to be there.