Caps shows a pulse, but still fall short to TFC
Toronto’s Laryea scores early before hosts cruise to win and extend streak
It was better. It still wasn’t good enough.
Toronto FC posted its second straight win over the Vancouver Whitecaps — extending its club-record unbeaten streak to 17 games — Tuesday night at BMO Field, posting a 1-0 victory on the strength of Richie Laryea’s 15th-minute goal.
The Reds (4-0-3) remain second in the Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference, while the Whitecaps (2-5-0) stay in eighth place in the Western Conference.
The Whitecaps are staying in Toronto before heading to Montreal for a Tuesday game against the Impact, their third match in the all-canadian series that is making up Phase 2 of Major League Soccer’s return to play.
Here’s what we learned:
LET’S GET IN FORMATION
The Whitecaps switched to a 5-3-2 formation for the game, with Andy Rose and Derek Cornelius bracketing Ranko Veselinović as
centre backs, with Ali Adnan and Jake Nerwinski as wingbacks.
The switch was to address the numbers that Toronto used to overwhelm Vancouver in the midfield on Tuesday, and while there was improvement Friday, the Caps were still outgunned in the middle of the park.
Toronto had 67.5 per cent possession, compared with Tuesday’s 75, and outshot the Caps only 15-6.
Three point-blank saves from Thomas Hasal — including one late in the game on Alejandro Pozuelo, who was in on a breakaway — prevented the score from being any higher.
But Vancouver hasn’t scored a goal in nearly 289 minutes, being shut out in three consecutive games, and has just two shots on target in its two games against Toronto.
Vancouver’s last goal came courtesy of Cristian Dajome in the 59th minute against San Jose in a 4-3 loss in Orlando, Fla.
OUTCLASSED, BUT NOT OUTPLAYED
Toronto put the game in cruise control after Lareya’s goal, passing through, around and behind the Whitecaps, who were better organized defensively. But the TFC players managed to find the pockets of space between players and lines, allowing short, easy passes to maintain possession against a Caps team much more cautious in its pressing.
Lucas Cavallini had Vancouver’s one key pass in the game, as opposed to Toronto’s 13 — six coming from Pozuelo, who now has a league-leading seven assists after setting up Lareya’s goal.
Pozuelo and Auro had 116 and 107 touches, respectively, while the Caps’ top man was Rose’s 62 touches and 55 passes.
LORDY, YORDY
The Caps switched up their starting lineup Friday, with Yordy Reyna expected to come off the bench — the same strategy Dos Santos employed to get the second-half win against the Chicago Fire last month at the MLS is Back tournament.
But Reyna turned up late for the game, and was sent from the bench to the stands, with Georges Mukumbilwa taking his spot in the 18.
The team said Reyna had been late repeatedly, and sporting director and CEO Axel Schuster told TSN before the game “we have rules and understand mistakes will happen. However, there are ramifications when standards are not met.”
Reyna has one goal and one assist in four starts and five appearances this season.