Yeah, even when St. Mirren pressed in the second half it was clear NYFC was a class above them in talent.Originally Posted by Yohan
This year's going to be bloodbath, as Beckerman said. So much new class; NYFC will be tough, Orlando will be tough, Columbus will be mega tough, same with New England, Philly has gotten better...
No walk in the park.
I watched the first 20-25 mins of the game. NYCFC had pretty much all the possession and were moving it around with ease. St.Mirren barely had a touch.
Villa looked excellent too.
Who's the kid in training today.....oh wait.....
I a super excited for one key reason... we essential have our full roster available to us at the start of preseason. So a month of the guys getting to know each other. Granted we start 7 on the road but we played decent on the road last year if memory serves (better than at home atleast) Sets up a ton of home games and if we are clicking by having the full team game in and game out could be setting ourselves up for a good playoff placing. Also assuming their is no strike and they work out a CBA, with the increase in salary CAP and possibly DP's, sets up the team to be able to add and make a push into August. Very exciting potential.
I have only been following the team last 3 years or so but have we ever had the whole team including DP's at the start of preseason? Still could use a wide player or two but summer window could address that and I hope Lovitz will continue to develop in that role.
I have to agree, very important the guys have time to gel and just get to know one another. The core of this team is locked and loaded long term, so i hope this all works out because this team has the potential and pieces in place to be a great team for a long time. Then you add another potential DP and we can add another really solid piece in the future
This is the first time I can recall our roster being set this early in the pre-season. Kudos to management on that front at least.
Was training open to the public??Who's the kid in training today.....oh wait.....
Reporters.
Giovinco lives up to billing at practice
TORONTO - Italian playmaker Sebastian Giovinco did not disappoint in his first practice with Toronto FC.
Just five foot four, the former Juventus player was easy to spot on the practice field under the bubble Wednesday. But it was his speed and vision more than his size that caught notice.
"Good players find ways to fit right in and he certainly is a very, very good player," captain Michael Bradley said with a smile.
"For his first day, training with the group, he didn't waste any time," he added.
Bradley speaks Italian from his time at Roma so the two already have a bond and they walked off the practice field in conversation.
Head coach Greg Vanney said Giovinco comes as advertised.
"He's very quick and nifty in the pockets, in those little tight spaces ... He's shifty in that he can unbalance defenders and create little fractions of time in areas where a lot of guys can't. His vision around the field to bring other people into the game is special so we're very pleased."
The Italian's fitness is also good, given his head start in the Italian season.
Giovinco, nicknamed the Atomic Ant, said he enjoyed the practice and was impressed by his new club.
"I like the way that the team plays soccer," he said through an interpreter.
While small in stature, Giovinco is long on ink. Both of his arms are heavily tattooed — Popeye seems to figure on one arm — as well as one leg below the knee.
Vanney said while Giovinco's understanding of English is pretty good, the player is eager to learn the language.
Bradley was asked whether former Roma and Juventus players could get on.
"We're both Toronto FC now," he said happily.
Last edited by ronzilla; 02-11-2015 at 05:53 PM.
Watching the post-training session interviews today, it seems that Steve Caldwell still seems a bit bitter about losing the captaincy. Could prove to be a problem in the locker room or could be used as a way to light a fire inside him this year.
TFC is very good at screwing up supposedly a positive thing into a negative thing.
Not man enough to tell Caldwell about this news in person? poor man management
Years have gone by and Ive finally learned to accept myself for who I am: a beggar for good football.
I go about the world, hand outstretched, and in the stadiums I plead: A pretty move, for the love of God.
And when good football happens, I give thanks for the miracle and I dont give a damn which team or country performs it.
-Eduardo Galeano
Seems like the club was waiting for Caldwell to give up the armband on his own will, so he could avoid any friction or hard feelings, so they ended up doing it the hard way. Its kind of selfish and disrespectful to Bradley.
As I mentioned above, I think Leiweke messed up by blabbing to supporters about this, last week when Seba was arriving in Toronto. At the time, Vanney & Caldwell were in Florida; Bradley was away with the USMNT. Then it started blowing up on Twitter & elsewhere so Vanney had to address it, perhaps before he wanted to -- i.e., before the whole team was together.
Maybe the whole thing was already too late at that point, and they should have dealt with it a couple of weeks ago -- what Caldwell alluded to. However I bet Leiweke made it worse.
He REALLY wants to move on.
Just watching the interviews from yesterday. Who the fuck is the guy who keeps asking about the Leafs?
Lance Brown - CTV sports talking head
Doubt he'd ever been to a TFC practice before.
Doubt it. As well he's a huge pro Argos to BMO guy and usually talks with distain about anything to do with as he would say The FC.
he is a vanilla cookie cutter so called sportscaster..boring
Just throwing this out there, spoke with Vanney casually and he seemed it was important to point out how Bradley played basically most of the season with a broken foot , in a good amount of pain and kept it very quiet . I think we are in for some pleasant surprises this year . Bradley refuses to allow any excuses . He's hard not to really admire . AND he wants to be here . So Mr. Caldwell , sorry but as much as they should have sugar coated the captaincy switch .....Bradley simply is in another league and a rare true leader .
Bradley's involvement feels a lot like Beckham year 2.
I understand how they handled the captaincy issue is fkd up, the length of time and not telling him in person is a bitch move BUT
The team under his captaincy was a wreck regardless. If he is a professional he will move forward positively.
He was the king pin of our atrocious defence but he must be realistic. His captain days are be behind him. He still is a great player
employed with a great club at 34. He's coming to grips with his age in time but he should do it privately, Toronto media is just drooling for a story like this.
De Rosario is the best Canadian player of all time. MLS All Star time and time again. He was handed a rough deal by TFC but not a word in the paper
of his dissatisfaction or disappointment. He took it with a stiff lip and moved on. Pro sports are a tough gig and somtimes you have to act, Regardless of how you feel.
Last edited by dutch; 02-14-2015 at 03:06 AM.
Lost me here. While DeRo was a great player, all we heard about was his disappointment in the paper.
Last edited by shwade; 02-14-2015 at 10:11 AM.
I never read that personally. My point was if anyone should be upset with the organization its him, yet he never came out and said the organization handled it wrong.
If im wrong, I apologize
He most certainly did, dude, several times. He also raised in the dressing room, on the pitch, even in media once he'd moved to New York.
I think he's a good guy and a great player; but he never understood tact, never understood his own limitations and he certainly put himself and his family (not a knock!) over his teams -- which may be sane and sensible, given how MLS and MLSE behave sometimes, but has to be done with great care.
Hey Yohan, how about an official gameday thread for tomorrow?
Toronto FC 2015 Pre-Season tournament schedule (Subject to change)
Wednesday, February 18 – Oklahoma City Energy FC 7:30 p.m. IMG Academy Stadium
Is there any slim chance of watching this? I would be happy to watch this even on a crummy feed.
(Supposedly) All games will be streamed, here: http://www.imgacademy.com/mls/
From - http://www.torontofc.ca/news/2015/02...sion-bradenton
Schedule in Bradenton
Catch all of the games via livestream on torontofc.ca
Date February 18 - 7:30 PM ET Toronto FC Oklahoma City Energy FC February 21 - 12:00 PM ET Toronto FC HB Koge February 25 - 7:30 PM ET Toronto FC New York Red Bulls February 28 - TBD Toronto FC TBD
I was only talking about after he wasnt being played by nelsen and than having his option declined. He was much more quiet. I believe he learnt from his past
Nope. There were articles at the end of last season where he went on about how he didn't think it was fair for him to be on the bench and how he felt he had much more to offer.
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