On The Beat: Five questions about Toronto FC with Waking The Red's Charlie O'Connor-Clarke

Ahead of Sunday’s Revolution match at Toronto FC, we got the chance to sit down with Waking The Red’s Charlie O’Connor-Clarke, who gave us a little insight into TFC in these early weeks of the 2019 season.

BSJ: First question is a simple one: No long run in the Champions League for TFC this season bodes well for the Reds in 2019, true or false, and why?

COCC: It's certainly disappointing for the club to follow up last year's Champions League success with such a pitiful exit, no two ways about it. That said, we were kidding ourselves if we thought they had the strength to make another deep run. There's a real case to be made for 2018's failures in MLS being down to that long CCL run (and the thrown away games/injuries it caused, not to mention the emotional impact of losing the final on penalties). TFC desperately need to get back into the playoffs this year and return to the normal we'd started to expect, and having no distractions from that goal will go a long way. With a thinner roster this year, a lighter load of matches in the first few months of the season will help immensely and allow them to use the best possible lineup as much as possible, without putting too much strain on aging players like Drew Moor and Laurent Ciman.

BSJ: Obviously this past offseason was about the departure of not only Sebastian Giovinco, but also of Victor Vasquez. And not only that, it’s looking like Jozy Altidore’s going to be out of action for a little longer after his foot surgery. And sure, a 3-1 scoreline against Philthy Philly looks great, but that’s two goals out of Michael Bradley, who doesn’t put his scoring boots on that often; heck, Nick DeLeon scored on Opening Weekend. So the question is… is this Terrence Boyd’s (if he gets into the squad) team for the time being, or Jonathan Osorio’s, or what? Where’s the offense coming from?

COCC: In theory, it's going to be Alejandro Pozuelo's team, once he comes over (after this weekend's game). He's billed as a similar creative playmaker to Vazquez, albeit younger, fitter, and possibly even better (having made an even greater impact in the Belgian league than VV did in his time there). He'll provide the service, but you're right; this club will need somebody to knock in the goals. Altidore, of course, is a top-notch striker in MLS when he's fit, especially when the ball stays at his feet, but health will be a concern -- fortunately, the club seems to be taking no chances with rushing him back early. I do think Boyd has a chance to provide some goal-scoring help, especially if he's kept to a bench role; his time at TFC hasn't started well, but he hasn't had consistent first team minutes in a while. It'll come. Beyond that, it's hard to count on Osorio to put up the same scoring numbers he did last year, but his new contract means the pressure is on him to contribute as well.

BSJ: Interesting to me when watching film earlier this week: Toronto starts in the 3-4-3 with the three-man back line, but Auro, Jr. had the tendency to sink back, and it wasn’t rare to see additional midfielders sinking back. If that’s the way Toronto wants to play against the Revolution on Sunday night, just how difficult will it be for New England to crack that code to beat them?

COCC: It's very hard to tell how exactly TFC really want to play. Coach Greg Vanney keeps saying he wants to play with wingers, but never really seems to do so. Auro is probably best when he makes overlapping runs up the right (same goes for Justin Morrow on the left), and in recent years it's been fairly common to see Michael Bradley dropping into the back line from midfield occasionally. From what we've seen this year, though, Bradley is playing a slightly more advanced role, leaving Drew Moor to command the defense. If he plays in the middle of a trio with Chris Mavinga and Laurent Ciman, it should be a well-organized line, which is the best Toronto can hope for. If it's a two-man center back pairing, the holes are there to be exploited with defenders who like to press high and jump into tackles.

BSJ: Who’s the wild card that you want Revs supporters aware of this weekend?

COCC: I'll go with Jordan Hamilton, if he starts. He's a younger academy guy, but the time is coming for him to put up or shut up. He scored a great header in the CCL a couple weeks ago, but other than that he hasn't produced much in the way of scoring for TFC. He's likely to get a bit more of a look as one of the first-choice strikers this season, so he'll need to make an impact in every appearance. Hamilton is a talented player with a good touch on the ball in and around the box, and if some of his chances start going in then he'll carve out a proper MLS career for himself. This is a crucial juncture for him, though. If he's on the pitch on Sunday, it could go either way.

BSJ: Obviously it’s a few weeks off, but that Canadian Premier League kicks off next month. Toronto FC is staying put in MLS, but you’ve got that York9 FC outfit in your backyard, and right down the street in Hamilton, you have Forge FC, so a pretty sweet Ontario derby. What’s the mood around Toronto about the new league, the two new teams, and has there been any rumblings from Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment about the league itself? Can Toronto and the surrounding area support three football clubs?

COCC: People around the Toronto soccer community are generally pretty positive about the CPL, which has kind of been a long time coming for Canada. I don't think there'll be many people abandoning TFC completely to support York9 or Forge, but both clubs are definitely feeling a lot of love from their local fans. The three clubs are very geographically spread out, with pretty distinct identities; there's no reason why people in Toronto's suburbs or out in Hamilton can't support their more local club as well as TFC. In terms of relations between them, MLSE seem to be getting along pretty well with the CPL. TFC recently loaned Ryan Telfer, a young player who made an impact in MLS last year, to York9, so they're definitely willing to work together. MLSE have also hinted that they've been looking at maybe buying an expansion club in the CPL (by no means a farm team or TFC affiliate, though) at some point, but who knows how far in the future that would be. I think the two entities work together well enough, and there's definitely enough space for them all to fit together pretty well in Toronto.