2009 TFC Goal.com Preview

[TFCREDNWHITE]

MLS 2009 TEAM PREVIEW: Toronto FC

Toronto FC has only been in existence for two seasons, but already the pressure is on the club to achieve. Goal.com's Talha Zaheer explains why playoffs are a necessity for the young club in 2009


more here:

http://goal.com/en-us/news/1110/majo...iew-toronto-fc

[TFCREDNWHITE]

Did you know? Lionel Messi once heralded Vitti as the one closest to him and Aguero in potential, foreseeing a future for him in Europe

Nice!, Lets hope so!! Go Vitti Go!!

I think this kid is going to be DEADLY this year! I just have a feeling...

[Steve]

One thing I don't understand is everyone's obsession over Edu. Sure, in the first season he was good, but he faultered last year. And saying Robinson needs to step up to provide what Edu did is absolutely insane.

[maninb]

"Some quarters have even proposed the idea of a second MLS franchise from the city."

ROTFLMAO!!! Who the f*ck is she kidding!!! Who in their right mind would be dumb enough to propose such a silly notion? Maybe by 2030...

[brad]

Did you know? Lionel Messi once heralded Vitti as the one closest to him and Aguero in potential, foreseeing a future for him in Europe

Nice!, Lets hope so!! Go Vitti Go!!

I think this kid is going to be DEADLY this year! I just have a feeling...

Very curious about this as well. Can't wait to see him play.

I'm also interested to see what Barrett has to offer this season. Fitness seemed to be a problem with him last year - an off season and pre-season under the direction of Winsper should really help that.

Add in Dichio and Ibbie as impact subs, and things are looking promising up front.

[Shaughno]

^^ Definitely shouldn't have a problem scoring this year. VERY excited for this season.

[Shaughno]

And that's actually the best written article I've read from goal.com

[bdiddy]

Hey guys, not sure if you know this but Barrett has a medical problem that does inhibit his ability to be properly conditioned. Basically he sweats way too much, which results in massive cramping around 70-80th minutes.

Although i think this new training regime and better fitness is allowing him to play the full 90, but i know last year that was a problem for him.

[Hitcho]

Very curious about this as well. Can't wait to see him play.

I'm also interested to see what Barrett has to offer this season. Fitness seemed to be a problem with him last year - an off season and pre-season under the direction of Winsper should really help that.

Add in Dichio and Ibbie as impact subs, and things are looking promising up front.

DD won't be an impact sub - why is everyone so convinced that he will nothing mroe than that? He's said openly several times if he didn;t think he could compete for a starting spot he wouldn;t have played on, and given that he talked it all over with JC before deciding, you;ve got to assume that on paper at least, he's considered one of three main strikers. He won't start every game, like Giggs doesn't at manure, but then neither will CB and I doubt Vitti will either, unless he's on absolute fire from the first game.

Agreed re CB and his fitness though - I'm hoping for three main strikers all on top of their game this season, and all offering very different stengths and assets. Should be good!

[Shaughno]

Speaking of Barrett, check this video from the U-20's in Holland.

[Shaughno]

DD won't be an impact sub - why is everyone so convinced that he will nothing mroe than that? He's said openly several times if he didn;t think he could compete for a starting spot he wouldn;t have played on, and given that he talked it all over with JC before deciding, you;ve got to assume that on paper at least, he's considered one of three main strikers. He won't start every game, like Giggs doesn't at manure, but then neither will CB and I doubt Vitti will either, unless he's on absolute fire from the first game.

Agreed re CB and his fitness though - I'm hoping for three main strikers all on top of their game this season, and all offering very different stengths and assets. Should be good!

More often than not, Dichio's appearances will be subs IMO.

[brad]

More often than not, Dichio's appearances will be subs IMO.

If they aren't, the should be. That's where he'll be most effective with his lack of pace.

Also going to be less chances of injury taking him out for long periods.

[Shaughno]

Agreed. Come on to batter defenders when they're already tiring out. Depending on Vitti's fitness, I can see DD coming in for Barrett and him creating a ton of chances for Vitti.

[TorontoBlades]

there will likely be injuries and absences this season all over the place - the good news is we can have a DD or a Cronin or a Frei or a Gala step in and be just as effective. I think that's what is going to make us such a unique side in '09...being able to do all of this in light of all of the restrictions put on a MLS club, especially on in Canada

[djking2]

"The squad, while blessed with talent, is short of numbers. This lack of depth may be TFC’s undoing this season"

With the new 24 man roster every team in MLS is short of numbers. If a team has three players on the sick you can't even have a full intrasquad game. Given that it's pretty much equal throughout the league and I don't see our lack of depth a huge issue anywhere but at CB.

[Steve]

there will likely be injuries and absences this season all over the place - the good news is we can have a DD or a Cronin or a Frei or a Gala step in and be just as effective. I think that's what is going to make us such a unique side in '09...being able to do all of this in light of all of the restrictions put on a MLS club, especially on in Canada

See, what I like about this team is that, for the first time ever in TFC history, we can respond strategically to other teams. For our first two years, subs were basically used for like-for-like substitutions (or, more realistically, like-for-not-quite-as-good-but-less-tired). Our attack also was usually rather one dimensional (you could guess what we would do).

Now, we have 3 good strikers who all play differently, so just changing up the strike partnership can change the game dramatically. We also seem to have good options at defensive mid, so we can sub off an attacking mid for a second defensive one to switch to a more defensive minded cup formation (instead of a diamond, as I assume will be our standard). We have a speedy winger in the wings (Smith) to put on if their defense is looking a little slow, and 3 attacking options (Guevera, DeRo, Ricketts) who will force the opposing team into a difficult decision, and give us real options.

So yeah, if we can pick up 2 more players to act as cover (one more attacking mid/winger, and 1 more CB/left back) I think we're going to have as much depth as is possible in this crazy league.

[Damien]

"The squad, while blessed with talent, is short of numbers. This lack of depth may be TFC’s undoing this season"

With the new 24 man roster every team in MLS is short of numbers. If a team has three players on the sick you can't even have a full intrasquad game. Given that it's pretty much equal throughout the league and I don't see our lack of depth a huge issue anywhere but at CB.

Agreed. Sometimes the writers of these articles have to meet a quota for article length. This is just a garbage filler.

[TFCREDNWHITE]

Speaking of Barrett, check this video from the U-20's in Holland.

That was HILARIOUS!!!

"Skydiving is for retards!" HAHAHA

"I'm not the trick master"

and then at the end he misses a cross and yells "AAwwww FUCK!"

Was that from the U20 World Cup in 2005 i think...???

[Lucky Strike]

One thing I don't understand is everyone's obsession over Edu. Sure, in the first season he was good, but he faultered last year. And saying Robinson needs to step up to provide what Edu did is absolutely insane.

Agreed. It's just a by-product of others not seeing every TFC game. If they had, they'd see what we do: exactly what you described. And remember, Edu was way overhyped in the US. Don't get me wrong, he performed very well in 2007 (especially for a rookie) but he wasn't as good in 2008. In my view: Robbo > Edu.

[stretchthetruth]

See, what I like about this team is that, for the first time ever in TFC history, we can respond strategically to other teams. For our first two years, subs were basically used for like-for-like substitutions (or, more realistically, like-for-not-quite-as-good-but-less-tired). Our attack also was usually rather one dimensional (you could guess what we would do).

Now, we have 3 good strikers who all play differently, so just changing up the strike partnership can change the game dramatically. We also seem to have good options at defensive mid, so we can sub off an attacking mid for a second defensive one to switch to a more defensive minded cup formation (instead of a diamond, as I assume will be our standard). We have a speedy winger in the wings (Smith) to put on if their defense is looking a little slow, and 3 attacking options (Guevera, DeRo, Ricketts) who will force the opposing team into a difficult decision, and give us real options.

So yeah, if we can pick up 2 more players to act as cover (one more attacking mid/winger, and 1 more CB/left back) I think we're going to have as much depth as is possible in this crazy league.

this is what excites me the most about our team this year... we can adjust tactically to exploit weakness, instead of putting 'fresh legs' out just to replace guys who are gassed...

putting Dichio out as an impact sub will totally change the flow of the game, and open up opportunities for Vitti, but also using him as a target man will free up space for De Ro and Guevara to be aggressive on the attack... i cant wait to see this in action

[cougars732]

is anyone here worried a bit about the goalkeeping?
we take sutts for granted and with this attack alot of teams will be looking for the counter.
i think he could get exposed...

[scooter]

One thing I don't understand is everyone's obsession over Edu. Sure, in the first season he was good, but he faultered last year. And saying Robinson needs to step up to provide what Edu did is absolutely insane.

you noticed that too

what about his comments on opposition finding it hard to play on turf
where did that come from

[Don Julio]

Terrible article - no actual research just generic comments and guesswork.

[BFin]

That was HILARIOUS!!!

"Skydiving is for retards!" HAHAHA

"I'm not the trick master"

and then at the end he misses a cross and yells "AAwwww FUCK!"

Was that from the U20 World Cup in 2005 i think...???

I liked "COME ON MARVELL GET IT IN THE AIR!"

[BFin]

is anyone here worried a bit about the goalkeeping?
we take sutts for granted and with this attack alot of teams will be looking for the counter.
i think he could get exposed...

No.
Seeing as how every analyst is saying the goaltending battle is great and that all of them are performing wonderfully competing, I would say no. Not at all.

[Oldtimer]

is anyone here worried a bit about the goalkeeping?
we take sutts for granted and with this attack alot of teams will be looking for the counter.
i think he could get exposed...

No.
Seeing as how every analyst is saying the goaltending battle is great and that all of them are performing wonderfully competing, I would say no. Not at all.

I'm not worried unless we don't get another CB. Weak defense = GK who has to do way too much. Strong defense = a couple of saves will get you a clean sheet.

[Cambridge_Red]

hahahaha on the Edu comment. What a load of bullshit.

[Stoda]

Speaking of Barrett, check this video from the U-20's in Holland.

At 2:00 Chad says "COME ON MARVELL GET IN THE AIR!"

Interesting..