2016 Red Team Playoff Clinching Watch (aka Toronto FC 2016 MLS season thread)

[rob.notenboom]

8 minutes ago, El Hombre said:

In Ontario it's common to hoe roads.  People call it "urban gardening".  Really big with the hipsters (ie. Trillium).  Doesn't usually work too well if done by an amateur, but professional road hoe-ers can yield bumper crops of gravel berries, asphalt beans and concrete arugula.

No pavement peas, eh? Amateurs. 

[El Hombre]

10 hours ago, Free kick said:

Ricketts scored the kind if goal that you expect him to score.

Actually, based on a multitude of opinions around here, most expected him to put that ball somewhere in the vicinity of the Gardiner Expressway. 

I was so happy to see that finish.  Very impressive.

[Yohan]

Ricketts has been used as a super sub as one of 2 or 3 strikers for TFC in 2 games he's been in so far. Using his pace to run off the shoulder of last defender. Still has first touch of a drunken donkey, but I'm impressed by his off the ball movement to get himself into the right spot for a scoring chance.

Vanney has been using Rickett's strength as a forward, instead of utilizing him as a wide midfielder. Take note, Floro...

[paul-collins]

On 7/29/2016 at 7:14 PM, Trillium said:

TFC with 27 points after 20 ( 60 points ) games has earned .45% of available points in games played.

Rightly or wrongly I think TFC gets 12 points out of remaining 42 points on offer. 

I just wanted to be part of this very important thread.

[Gian-Luca]

After last night's game I really hope they ban games after two days rest in the schedule as both teams were sub-par and sloppy. Vanney needs to rotate the squad a bit more - I know they have a ton of injuries in midfield, but they can certainly try playing Babouli or Ricketts on the right side of midfield rather than Endoh (who probably looked the most sub-par).

After re-watching much of the game once I got hom, I see that after Giovinco decided to keep the ball (after stealing it from Maund) and beat two defenders rather than passing to a wide-open Jordan Hamilton, the camera zoomed into Giovinco screaming "Fuck off!!!!!" at one of his teammates. I rewinded it back to see who it was and it looked like it was Delgado, who I assume must have been daring to tell Giovinco that he should have passed it instead of trying to do it all on his own. I learned two things from this - one, Giovinco's English is much better than I thought and two, he really doesn't seem to like Delgado - maybe because Delgado does what nobody else dares to do which is to criticize him on the pitch. Kristian Jack mentioned in the broadcast that he was of the opinion that Delgado's performance in the past two games was enough to earn him the starting role once everyone is back and healthy but, while he played his best game of the season on Saturday, I still think he's too guilty of overhitting passes & crosses to warrant starting over Bradley & Cheyrou in that position. I suppose he might start over Endoh in the right of midfield once everyone is back, but I can't see him starting over those to (or Johnson for that matter).

[aloyol]

3 minutes ago, Gian-Luca said:

After last night's game I really hope they ban games after two days rest in the schedule as both teams were sub-par and sloppy. Vanney needs to rotate the squad a bit more - I know they have a ton of injuries in midfield, but they can certainly try playing Babouli or Ricketts on the right side of midfield rather than Endoh (who probably looked the most sub-par).

After re-watching much of the game once I got hom, I see that after Giovinco decided to keep the ball (after stealing it from Maund) and beat two defenders rather than passing to a wide-open Jordan Hamilton, the camera zoomed into Giovinco screaming "Fuck off!!!!!" at one of his teammates. I rewinded it back to see who it was and it looked like it was Delgado, who I assume must have been daring to tell Giovinco that he should have passed it instead of trying to do it all on his own. I learned two things from this - one, Giovinco's English is much better than I thought and two, he really doesn't seem to like Delgado - maybe because Delgado does what nobody else dares to do which is to criticize him on the pitch. Kristian Jack mentioned in the broadcast that he was of the opinion that Delgado's performance in the past two games was enough to earn him the starting role once everyone is back and healthy but, while he played his best game of the season on Saturday, I still think he's too guilty of overhitting passes & crosses to warrant starting over Bradley & Cheyrou in that position. I suppose he might start over Endoh in the right of midfield once everyone is back, but I can't see him starting over those to (or Johnson for that matter).

That was a frustrating play by Giovinco. Pass the ball to a wide open Hamilton please!

I thought Endoh was terrible and surprise he didn't came off for Ricketts instead of Chapman.

Bono, makes two important save but looked shaky on a couple of crosses. I don't think we'll see Roberts getting a chance anytime soon unless Bono picks up an injury or a RC.

[Gian-Luca]

1 hour ago, aloyol said:

That was a frustrating play by Giovinco. Pass the ball to a wide open Hamilton please!

I thought Endoh was terrible and surprise he didn't came off for Ricketts instead of Chapman.

Bono, makes two important save but looked shaky on a couple of crosses. I don't think we'll see Roberts getting a chance anytime soon unless Bono picks up an injury or a RC.

The coming out properly for crosses is something he'll likely gain with more experience - his reactions to the two saves were very good though, so you have to wonder if his main weakness at the moment is a mental one rather than a skill one. Given that he was given MOTM yesterday (and all credit to him for the good saves), yes I don't think we're going to see Roberts get a chance in the near future. I just hope that if the situation is the same and Roberts gets a chance one day, that Vanney sticks with him as well if he makes a couple of mistakes that cost games.

[Macksam]

TFC controlled the opening 10 minutes of the  first half but relinquished said control with their substitutions. Even though the direct approach they opted for just barely paid off in the end, they shouldn't be starting either Altidore or Ricketts next game.

[Gian-Luca]

Osorio, Chapman and Ricketts set to start for TFC with Babouli, Roberts and a finally healthy Morgan on the bench. Surprisingly Hamilton not dressed. Lots of squad rotation with Bradley also back and set to start

[jpg75]

TFC beat NER 4-1 for another convincing home win. They finish their 4 game homestand with 12 points (maybe those are the 12 pts that Trillium saw in his crystal ball?). Giovinco with the hat-trick is now on 15 goals and leading the league. TFC on 36 points are only one point behind first place NYCFC with a game in hand. 

[TRM]

As goes Gio so goes TFC. Wow. I don't care how deep the Italian national team is, they can't be so deep that they can't use him. If you're in a weaker league you've got to dominate it to be considered for a team like the Italian national team. Well he sure has/is. Every team knows there is one player that they have to stop to have a chance of beating TFC and yet they can't do it.

 

[Macksam]

It is surprising considering Italy, while a talented football nation with rich history, don't really produce fast, creative wingers/number tens with finesse footwork and dribbling abilities. They probably will in the future considering they also embarked on a ten year plan akin to what Germany and Belgium did 16 years ago but that's beside the point. 

The only Italian player that's comparable to him is Lorenzo Insigne, who probably would match what Giovinco does if he was also in MLS.

Considering how talented he is, how he brings a skill set that Italy generally lacks, how he struggled to be a regular in the starting 11 for Juventus despite always putting in strong performances, Gio probably (and still does I imagine) has an attitude problem which Conte never liked.

I obviously can't be sure of this but we've seen how his demeanour is with other TFC guys so I imagine it must be something like that. There's a good reason he was shipped off to us.

[rob.notenboom]

45 minutes ago, Macksam said:

There's a good reason he was shipped off to us.

Yes. The millions and millions he was offered

[Unnamed Trialist]

On 6/8/2016 at 6:39 PM, jpg75 said:

TFC beat NER 4-1 for another convincing home win. They finish their 4 game homestand with 12 points (maybe those are the 12 pts that Trillium saw in his crystal ball?). Giovinco with the hat-trick is now on 15 goals and leading the league. TFC on 36 points are only one point behind first place NYCFC with a game in hand. 

What irks me is that TFC, one of the best teams in the league and hot, contender looking, is just two wins ahead of Caps who are totally pathetic this year, one of the worst teams in the league right now. 

I am of the opinion that good teams should be wiping out mediocre ones and reminding them in the standing as well that they have no right to even pretend they are on the same level. MLS is useless when it comes to setting up the conditions whereby crap football teams are punished for being crap.

[Havoc88]

On 2016-08-07 at 0:11 PM, Macksam said:

Considering how talented he is, how he brings a skill set that Italy generally lacks, how he struggled to be a regular in the starting 11 for Juventus despite always putting in strong performances, Gio probably (and still does I imagine) has an attitude problem which Conte never liked.

I obviously can't be sure of this but we've seen how his demeanour is with other TFC guys so I imagine it must be something like that. There's a good reason he was shipped off to us.

Or maybe he struggled to be better than the likes of Del Piero, Tevez, Iaquinta, Llorente, Osvaldo and Quagliarella - to name a few? No pun intended, but at 5'4 it's always going to be an uphill battle to earn respect, especially as a forward. A club like Juventus where the options are at minimum three players deep who can all be starters - it is easy to see why he never was a lock and that explanation is more likely than an attitude problem that there is no evidence from rather than him yelling at teammates on the pitch.

The reason he was shipped off to us most likely was because it was easy money on a depth player for them.

[Havoc88]

5 minutes ago, Havoc88 said:

 

Or maybe he struggled to be better than the likes of Del Piero, Tevez, Iaquinta, Llorente, Osvaldo and Quagliarella - to name a few? No pun intended, but at 5'4 it's always going to be an uphill battle to earn respect, especially as a forward. A club like Juventus where the options are at minimum three players deep who can all be starters - it is easy to see why he never was a lock and that explanation is more likely than an attitude problem that there is no evidence from rather than him yelling at teammates on the pitch - which, I'm sorry, I don't equate to an attitude problem.

The reason he was shipped off to us most likely was because it was easy money on a depth player for them.

[Havoc88]

LOL wtf how do you delete a post around here?!

[Ivan]

Damien Perquis is starting for Nottingham Forest today vs. Brighton & Hove.

[Gian-Luca]

Kurt Larson is reporting that TFC is going to acquire Panama's Armando Cooper on loan. Why, I don't know - if plays he would likely take playing time away from Osorio and/or Chapman

[Macksam]

17 hours ago, Gian-Luca said:

Kurt Larson is reporting that TFC is going to acquire Panama's Armando Cooper on loan. Why, I don't know - if plays he would likely take playing time away from Osorio and/or Chapman

The f*ck? This sounds like such a Whitecap thing to do. Let's hope this doesn't come to fruition.

[Gian-Luca]

I think he also plays on the right-side of midfield so you could also see him take time away from Endoh, which probably isn't a bad thing as that would be an upgrade. As an overall squad depth move for a playoff (dare I say title?) drive it would be an upgrade but I'd hate for him to wipe away a Canadian from the starting line-up, especially as I hate it when Cdn. MLS team give opportunities to players from our fellow Concacaf teams in the second tier of the Concacaf hierarchy (ie. Costa Rica, Honduras, Jamaica, T&T, Panama, El Salvador, Haiti and Guatemala) if its at the expense of developing Canadians or giving them opportunities.

Although the fact that he's constantly moving clubs is a bit of a red flag, if he's that good a player (and from my recollection of his performances for Panama, he is pretty skillful on the ball) you have to wonder why he can't stick with a club.

[Yohan]

TFC was going to sign a CAM one way or another. As good as Chapman has been for TFC, he's not consistent enough for a deep playoff run. And TFC needed depth at CAM bc Oso is not a CAM.

[Obinna]

Osorio has become far too passive for my liking. How many times last night did he collect the ball and immediately look for Bradley? Bradley is a better overall player but he doesn't have the offensive creativity that Osorio has (or had?). Is it just me or does anyone else see it like this?

[Gian-Luca]

2 hours ago, Obinna said:

Osorio has become far too passive for my liking. How many times last night did he collect the ball and immediately look for Bradley? Bradley is a better overall player but he doesn't have the offensive creativity that Osorio has (or had?). Is it just me or does anyone else see it like this?

Don't underestimate the "give me the ball because I say so" factor with Bradley - he is less demonstrative about screaming at his teammates than G he is less demonstrative about screaming at his teammates Giovinco but I believe that he still demands the ball from the more junior members of the team, which is everybody else in the midfield except for him at the moment.  that's not to say that it's all down to Bradley, but that it's a factor which has to be considered.

 To put it another way, I don't recall Osorio playing like that on that stretch where there was no Bradley & no Cheyrou, or even when Cheyrou was there but not Bradley.  And to be fair for last night, it's always a bit more difficult when you're playing against a bunker defence  

[Macksam]

3 hours ago, Obinna said:

Osorio has become far too passive for my liking. How many times last night did he collect the ball and immediately look for Bradley? Bradley is a better overall player but he doesn't have the offensive creativity that Osorio has (or had?). Is it just me or does anyone else see it like this?

I didn't notice him having a standout game yesterday. However, it may have just been yesterday's game as I recall him being quite positive and adventurous during the recent home stretch, which hardly featured Bradley so there is no denying that player is having a negative impact on Osorio's game. I wish Cheyrou was fit instead... :/