In this edition of Oppo Research, Hudson River Blue spoke with John Molinaro of TFC Republic to learn more about Toronto FC, New York City FC's opponent at Yankee Stadium on Thursday night. Here is your NYCFC vs Toronto FC preview.
• League Form: W-D-L-L-L
• Record: 4W, 5D, 10L | 17 points, 13th place
• Scoring Leader: Theodor Corbeanu and Federico Bernardeschi, 4 goals
• Assist Leader: Federico Bernardeschi, 3 assists
1. Bye-bye to Lorenzo Insigne and Federico Bernardeschi
Hudson River Blue: Toronto terminated the contracts of Italian designated players Lorenzo Insigne and Federico Bernardeschi on Tuesday. How does this affect the club going forward?
John Molinaro: It marks a significant culture change at the club. TFC will still go after DPs, but the days of splashing big bucks on foreign players are over. In the long-term plans, I don’t expect the Reds to fill those two open DP slots this summer. In the short term, this will mean more opportunities and minutes for the club’s young players.
Insigne only had one goal this season, so they’re not losing much. Bernardeschi was a dynamic attacker when he wanted to be, so someone will have to step up in his absence. The most likely candidate is Theo Corbeanu, who is on loan this season and looking to stay on permanently at TFC.
2. Toronto's poor start, lack of quality holds them back
HRB: Toronto FC is coming off a 3-0 victory over the Portland Timbers, ending a four-game winless streak. The team dominated without any of its designated players convincingly and looked sharp — could that win be the turning point for Toronto?
JM: I doubt it. The win over Portland was one of TFC’s best performances of the season and was a rare 90-minute, complete effort. And it was even more impressive considering the long list of absences they were dealing with in terms of injuries and the Gold Cup.
But Toronto dug itself into a big hole through the first half of the campaign and have a lot of ground to make up. They have a tough four-game road swing from mid-July to early August that they have to navigate. They still need to go out in the summer transfer window and bring in a striker and a No 10. Right now, I don’t think they have enough quality players to compete for a playoff spot.
3. Robin Fraser could be the long-term solution
HRB: First-year head coach Robin Fraser had a lot of positives to say after the Portland win. It hasn’t been a great season for Toronto so far, but do you think Fraser is the long-term solution for the club?
JM: I’d like to believe so. But honestly, I don’t know. I have a great deal of time for Robin — he’s a smart guy who gets on well with the media in Toronto. I think he’s been put into a very difficult situation after the club parted company with John Herdman last year. This is still a team in a rebuild, and he hasn’t been given enough quality players to turn things around.
One would hope that management is going to remain patient and give him time to set things right. I’d like to think when he has some semblance of a decent roster that he can do for Toronto what he did in his first few seasons in Colorado. But by that time, it may too late, and TFC will have moved on to another coach.
4. The X-Factor: Set pieces
HRB: What's the X-factor that could decide this game?
JM: Set pieces. TFC scored its first goal from a free kick in over a year on Saturday and only their fifth since 2019. Another of their goals came from a corner kick. Alonso Coello has looked dangerous in dead-ball situations in recent games, so it’s something that could give TFC the edge at Yankee Stadium.
5. Predicted score, Starting XI
HRB: Prediction time: Starting XI? Final score?
JM: Prediction: 1-1.
