Starts: 29
Minutes: 2,548
Age: 26
Key Stat: 1,162 completed passes, fourth-most on team
After establishing himself in the 2024 season, Kevin O’Toole was once again a mainstay in New York City FC's Starting XI in 2025. The left back logged 2,548 minutes through 34 appearances in all competitions matches this season, missing eight games due to injury and one due to suspension. O'Toole logged slightly less time in 2025 than he did in 2024, but he still managed to play the seventh-most minutes for the club.
Head Coach Pascal Jensen’s system relies heavily on his fullbacks to bomb up and down the pitch and contribute to both the offensive and defensive sides of the game. The 26-year-old created 21 chances, completed 11 successful dribbles, and provided one goal and one assist in all competitions this year. But in a system where the fullbacks are tasked to get high up the pitch, there comes the added risk of getting exposed in behind in wide areas. However, O’Toole remained defensively sound throughout the year, making 58 tackles and winning 125 duels.
It’s worth noting he received seven yellow cards in Major League Soccer. But it’s not uncommon to see fullbacks exposed in this system and having to resort to a foul or two.
Andrew Leigh
Slow out of the gate
The New York City FC defense as a whole had a shaky start to 2025. With Thiago Martin's injury in preseason keeping him out of the Starting XI for the opening two games, the defensive lineup was inconsistent from the jump. It didn't help that O’Toole received two yellows in the March 8 win over Orlando City in Matchday 3, and was suspended for the next fixture.
By Matchday 7, New York City had conceded 11 goals — including four to Atlanta United and three to the New England Revolution, two poor teams that failed to qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs. O’Toole then missed seven straight league matches due to a knee injury.
He rejoined the team at the midway point of the season, on Matchday 18. He came off the bench for three matches as he looked to regain fitness, but the left back played in all 17 remaining league games, making 13 starts and four substitute appearances as the team put together a record of 10W-1D-6L to close out the year.
Ending on a High
Kevin O’Toole was a key part of a New York City side that surged up the Eastern Conference table late in the season to a 5th Place finish. Despite crashing out of the MLS Cup Playoffs in the Eastern Conference Final to eventual champions Inter Miami, the months of November and December were quite prosperous for O’Toole.
While every player wants to finish a campaign with a trophy, O’Toole can be happy with his end to the season on a personal level. The New Jersey native started in all three rounds of NYCFC's run in the MLS Cup Playoffs. In some ways, his most impressive performance came in the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the heavily favored Philadelphia Union. After losing striker Alonso Martínez and midfielder Andrés Perea to injuries, Head Coach Pascal Jansen started O'Toole in midfield, where he partnered with 18-year-old Jonny Shore to shut down Philadelphia in a 1-0 win that nobody saw coming. O'Toole played a key role in helping a short-handed NYCFC pull off the win.
Oddly, there was an international hiatus in the middle of the 2025 MLS Playoffs. It disrupted the league's schedule, but it provided O’Toole with the opportunity of a lifetime: The left back was called up to the Ireland national team for his first international camp. (The New Jersey native can play for the team because his grandfather was born in Ireland.) O’Toole didn't see any minutes, but he was with the team when they scored two of the greatest upsets in this round of World Cup Qualifying when Ireland beat Portugal at home and Hungary on the road. Now the team are two wins away from making it to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
“This was always a dream of mine, to represent this country, to do it for my grandfather,” O’Toole said. “We’ve got really strong Irish connection and roots, and my dad has always been a proud descendant of an Irishman, and he’s always instilled those values in us, so I’m just really happy to be representing this country.”
After the end of the 2025 season, New York City announced that they were picking up O’Toole’s option for 2026. It shouldn't come as a surprise for the starter. But it’ll be interesting to see if the club decides to add another left back in the offseason, and add some competition to a position that doesn't have much in the way of depth. But for now, New York City fans can be excited to have O’Toole back, with expectations that the Irish international continues to improve.
