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2017 Toronto FC season (aka the 2017 MLS Cup clinching thread)

shermanator

By shermanator
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Gian-Luca Grand Master

Gian-Luca

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20 hours ago, BearcatSA said:

I'm guessing we'll see a Cheyrou-Delgado-Vazquez trio vs New England, perhaps a Bradley-Osorio-Chapman grouping vs Montreal.

Are you anticipating that Cooper will be played in the right wing-back position against Montreal as he did against Ottawa, or did you just forget about him (which would be understandable because his play has been largely forgettable so far this year)?

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to70 Enthusiast

to70

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On 6/18/2017 at 11:10 AM, Gian-Luca said:

ampionship. Although with Bradley suspended now against New England I suspect we will see him against Montreal regardless if everyone else is not a first choice starter, while Cheyrou will instead start against New England (and hopefully will play much better than he did against New England last time as he was unfortunately awful in that match).

 

I was checking the game reports on soccerway and mls.com and neither show a yellow card for Bradley. I was at the game and thought that he got one as well. Be interesting to see if it was actually reported by the ref.

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BearcatSA Grand Master

BearcatSA

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5 hours ago, Gian-Luca said:

Are you anticipating that Cooper will be played in the right wing-back position against Montreal as he did against Ottawa, or did you just forget about him (which would be understandable because his play has been largely forgettable so far this year)?

Possibly, or simply on the bench.  But then again, Vanney might decide he goes in the central mid pairing on Wednesday at the expense of either of the Canadians, who knows?

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TRM Newbie

TRM

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5 hours ago, Rheo said:

-Bradley skipping the first round to keep playing in the VCup and joining for the knockout round.

Wow, if true then that is commitment to our national championship I didn't expect.

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Rheo Contributor

Rheo

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10 minutes ago, TRM said:

Wow, if true then that is commitment to our national championship I didn't expect.

Just a projection but they specifically mentioned the Cup with Bradley. Fingers crossed as a TFC fan

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dyslexic nam Grand Master

dyslexic nam

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14 hours ago, TRM said:

Wow, if true then that is commitment to our national championship I didn't expect.

I suspect the players - including the non-Canadians - really look forward to the opportunity to win a trophy.  If you are signed with TFC, you really only have the MLS Cup and the V-Cup to play for at the club level.  And while our national championship may not be as deep as something like the FA Cup, it is still a trophy and it still counts.  As a pro, you only get so many chances to lift silverware.  

Plus, as much as I can rag on Americans occasionally, I like Bradley quite a bit.  He seems like a solid guy with a really high/consistent  level of commitment.  Pretty brilliant signing by TFC IMO.

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Yohan Contributor

Yohan

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1 hour ago, dyslexic nam said:

I suspect the players - including the non-Canadians - really look forward to the opportunity to win a trophy.  If you are signed with TFC, you really only have the MLS Cup and the V-Cup to play for at the club level.  And while our national championship may not be as deep as something like the FA Cup, it is still a trophy and it still counts.  As a pro, you only get so many chances to lift silverware.  

Plus, as much as I can rag on Americans occasionally, I like Bradley quite a bit.  He seems like a solid guy with a really high/consistent  level of commitment.  Pretty brilliant signing by TFC IMO.

I still think Bradley is overpriced at 6.5 mil per year, but not only he's a good DM and his passing is critical to TFC offence, he's really done a good job as a captain and helped to change the mentality of TFC that no longer plays scared and fights to win every game.

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Dub Narcotic Newbie

Dub Narcotic

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Bradley is probably the best non-striker in the league and a top-10 if not top-5 player overall. His usage rate is insane (regularly gets close to 100 touches a game), he is left on a defensive island in an attacking 4-4-2, he's a great passer, has a great workrate, and, as you mentioned, helped bring a winning mentality to the team that never existed before.

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dyslexic nam Grand Master

dyslexic nam

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1 hour ago, Yohan said:

I still think Bradley is overpriced at 6.5 mil per year, but not only he's a good DM and his passing is critical to TFC offence, he's really done a good job as a captain and helped to change the mentality of TFC that no longer plays scared and fights to win every game.

I think "overpriced" is a pretty fluid concept.  Is Bradley worth that much.  Maybe no.  But maybe.  Getting a high level player, still in their prime, to forgo European exposure and come to MLS will always require a premium price. And for all those advocating a move away from the "retirement home for aging stars" idea that dominated early DP signings, that price will be a necessary evil.

I also keep in mind the historical context when assessing the value-for-money equation.  For a long time (like a really fucking long time) TFC were playing like shit.  Their fan base was started to get the feeling that they might be Leafs 2.0 - a consistently underperforming team that keeps getting bums in seats because of large population base and a willingness to tolerate mediocrity.  I don't have hard data to back it up, but my sense was that if they didn't turn things around in terms of on-field performances, their enviable level (and passion) of support was in jeopardy.

Bradley was part of that rehabilitation project - a major part.  And it has been a success.  Bums are in seats.  The win column is climbing.  MLS Final appearance last year.  V Cup last year, and on track this year.  And just generally some very enjoyable footy is being played in Toronto these days.

$6.5M is a lot of money.  But overpriced?  Not sure how to judge that in context.  From someone not in charge of balancing the books, it sure looks like a smart money investment to me.

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Free kick Grand Master

Free kick

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6 hours ago, Dub Narcotic said:

Bradley is probably the best non-striker in the league and a top-10 if not top-5 player overall. His usage rate is insane (regularly gets close to 100 touches a game), he is left on a defensive island in an attacking 4-4-2, he's a great passer, has a great workrate, and, as you mentioned, helped bring a winning mentality to the team that never existed before.

There is another thing to consider when assessing Bradley's value.  TFC and Sporting KC have the fewest goals allowed in the league and, Unless I am mistake,  by a sizeable margin.

When you compare the back lines for both teams, it's SKC's that's has the pedigree and name recognition judging from international play and call ups.  If you looked at names only,  you might think of TFC's backline as journeymen.  The great equalizer for TFC has to be the d mid play of Bradley 

 

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harrycoyster Contributor

harrycoyster

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6 minutes ago, Free kick said:

There is another thing to consider when assessing Bradley's value.  TFC and Sporting KC have the fewest goals allowed in the league and, Unless I am mistake,  by a sizeable margin.

When you compare the back lines for both teams, it's SKC's that's has the pedigree and name recognition judging from international play and call ups.  If you looked at names only,  you might think of TFC's backline as journeymen.  The great equalizer for TFC has to be the d mid play of Bradley 

 

I've said all season: I don't think there is a single player anywhere in the league as critical to his team's success/system as Bradley is to TFC. Maybe Nikolic, Villa and Piatti have an argument, but TFC's entire gameplan is dependent on Bradley's distribution and shielding of the central channel.

I think Bradley's is one of the best big money contract in the league. While he may not be the deal Villa and Nikolic are, he's a long way away from the disasters that are Kaka and Pirlo's contracts.

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Bison44 Grand Master

Bison44

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Or Gerrard, Lampard etc. They also got around 6mil a season, what did they give their teams besides headaches??  Thats a lot of money but at least we are getting a return on the investment.  Instead of flushing it like a lot of previous DP money.  

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jonovision Grand Master

jonovision

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6 minutes ago, Club Linesman said:

I assume they are being rested so they can play a big part in the second leg. It's unfortunate and something that will need to change but TFC only has so many quality Canadians.

Surely they have a Canadian that can do a better job than Endoh or Cooper have done so far this year.

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Club Linesman Mentor

Club Linesman

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I am not a fan of either Endoh (although he has shown glimpses of skill in recent performances) or Cooper, but if we start Osorio, Ricketts and Chapman tonight - who is left to play Tuesday?  Morgan Hamilton and ...

TFC appears to be taking the Canadian Championship seriously and they don't want to leave it to a one game playoff in August.

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Gian-Luca Grand Master

Gian-Luca

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Four Canucks on the bench - Ricketts, Morgan, Chapman and Osorio. Nice to see Morgan in the 18 again. Edwards and Hamilton are not dressed, presumably being rested (along with the also-not-dressed Beitashour) as they will start again on Tuesday. 

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Gian-Luca Grand Master

Gian-Luca

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They somehow credited Endoh with an assist on the Moor goal - similar to the goal he scored with his hair last year, if he had any touch on the ball it was a completely insignificant one as it didn't alter the path of the ball. He certainly didn't "create" anything unless you count the brutal giveaway that should have resulted in NE tying the game up. My father and I were chuckling that after that play Endoh tried to hide on the other side of the field from Vanney in the hopes he wouldn't get subbed off (which of course he was)

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