Toronto FC-Columbus Crew: Toronto Opens '08 with Disappointing Defeat
Coming off their first year as an expansion franchise in the MLS with a 6-17-7 record, Toronto FC continued their consistent road woes after failing to put forth a disappointing performancing in front of a travelling mob of 2,500 devoted TFC supporters at Crew Stadium as TFC fell to the Columbus Crew in a 2-0 defeat.
Without touching the ball for most of the first half, Scottish midfielder Adam Moffat netted a sneaky shot past rookie goalkeeper Brian Edwards, TFC's second round pick out of Wake Forest in the 2008 MLS Superdraft, in the 26th minute. Alejandro Moreno added to TFC's grief with the decisive second goal as he charged through behind a perpelxed Toronto defence.
Despite the scoreline, it wasn't as if Toronto didn't create their opportunities of their own.
Making a run near the edge of the penalty area, striker Jeff Cunningham was given a rather fortunate penalty after he collided in a mid-air collision with a Crew defender. However, Collin Samuel was denied when he had his spot kick parried by former Wake Forest standout Will Hesmer on the brink of half time.
One of the few bright spots for TFC, Jimmy Brennan, had a dubious decision go against him in the 52nd minute as his glaring shot was cleared off the line at the last second by Crew defender Robbie Rogers, who was standing on the goalline. Had it not been for Rogers' clearance, Brennan would have most likely given his club a lifeline as the shot had trickled by goalkeeper Will Hesmer. 'Captain Canada' also had another opportunity earlier in the first half when he nearly hit the target after smashing a volley directly off a corner from teammate Todd Dunivant.
Brennan understood the frustrations from the travelling supporters as they didn't have much to cheer about in Columbus.
“They came down in numbers and they did their part and we wanted the three points to thank them and for ourselves and it didn't go our way,” said the club captain.
“Of course, they're going to be upset because we didn't win and we didn't get a goal. But if they look at it, away from home and the chances we created, they are football fans and they understand the game so they'll look at it and say yeah, look they created chances, they worked hard."
The game itself was an even tilt as new boss John Carver was left frustrated by his team's inability to convert chances into goals. Cunningham and Samuel looked rather tired and lethargic while spearheading TFC's attack for most of the game until fan favorite Danny Dichio was called into play as a substitute in the second half.
Even with Dichio's presence, Carver's 4-3-3 formation failed to create a spark for TFC as he found his squad scrambling to deal with the talented strikers of Columbus in Alejandro Moreno and Guillermo Schelotto. Carl Robinson and Maurice Edu were constantly forced back instead of being allowed to push forward and sustain an attack.
While the Columbus pairing demonstrated their fantastic flair and ability, their excessive use of simulation tactics is rather disturbing. On a number of occassions, either Moreno or Schelotto would go to ground in order to get free kicks or penalties from the officials.
Regardless, Mo Johnston will need to find some technical players avaliable on the world market in order to add some much needed flair to his roster. Considering that a number of key players will be off on international duty, Carver and Johnston will be better off looking for viable players to fill in the gaps during the summer months.
Maurice Edu and Marvell Wynne are off to Beijing after their American U-23 squad qualified with a 3-0 win over the Canadian U-23's in Nashville. Carl Robinson will most likely be called up for international duty with his native country of Wales. The same could be said for MLS rookie Julius James and Collin Samuel for Trinadad and Tobago.
Former Portuguese international Joao Pinto was rumored to have been close to signing with Toronto before moving back to his native country. After being shown the door by Sunderland boss Roy Keane, EPL winger Ross Wallace was also rumored to have been interested in joining Toronto earlier this month--however, with nothing materializing thus far.