Goal Drought Ends, But Poor Overall Performance Leads to 14th Loss

(Lino Terra, Editor) – Seconds after Maycoll Canizales bungled home TFC’s first goal in over 13 1/2 hours of MLS play, I received a phone call in the press box. It was my wife, running late and calling from the GO station outside the CNE.

'Did they score?' were the first words out of her mouth. She had heard the roar of the crowd and wanted confirmation. When I told her they did, there was no regret in her voice over having missed the goal, just a sense of relief that the drought was finally over.

Canizales opened the scoring in Toronto FC’s 2-1 loss to the Columbus Crew on Saturday. Although the crowd of 20,127 were able to cheer the first TFC goal at BMO since Andrea Lombardo scored against Aston Villa in a July friendly, the overall effort was disappointing and the Crew left Toronto with a well-deserved three points.

TFC had two glorious 1st half chances increase their lead, but Maurice Edu could not convert an open chance and Jeff Cunningham continued his horrendous conversion rate on clear cut breakaways.

Unfortunately, the early goal took a lot of the urgency out Toronto FC for the first hour of the match. Columbus had the better of possession and were rewarded for their efforts in the 61st minute when Jason Garey slotted home past Kenny Stamatopoulos, who was caught woefully out position after failing to parry away a low cross.

The resurgence was crushed in the 83rd on a brilliantly executed counterattack finished off by second half substitute Jacob Thomas. After Lombardo was only able to muster a weak pass into the box following a left side run, the Columbus keeper quickly put the ball back into play and released Thomas down the right side. Thomas blew past the TFC defence and drove a low shot into the far corner that left Stamatopoulos with no chance.

Poor execution ultimately destined Toronto FC to their 11th straight game without a victory. Even though they ended their scoring drought, poor crosses and a lack of composure and creativity in the penalty area resulted in a lacklustre offensive display that created significantly less opportunities than their previous match against Real Salt Lake.

With the season ticket renewal date looming, MLSE may want to consider some changes to provide the loyal fan base with some optimism for next season. Otherwise, they may not be able to attract the guaranteed sell outs that have been a staple of the inaugural season.

Photos by: Marius Pop