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Toronto FC (1) - New York Red Bulls (1) Post Match Summary

October 14, 2020 - Major League Soccer (MLS) - Toronto FC News Release

SCORING SUMMARY

TFC - Alejandro Pozuelo 23' (PK)

NYR - Caden Clark 77' (Marc Rzatkowski)

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY

NYR - Dru Yearwood 22' (caution)

NYR - Marc Rzatkowski 52' (caution

TFC - Pablo Piatti 53' (caution)

TFC - Ayo Akinola 60' (caution)

NYR - Amro Tarek 71' (caution)

RECORDS

TORONTO FC: 11-2-5 38 PTS.

NEW YORK RED BULLS: 7-8-3 24 PTS.

LINE-UPS

TORONTO FC - Quentin Westberg; Auro Jr., Omar Gonzalez, Chris Mavinga, Richie Laryea; Jonathan Osorio (C), Marky Delgado, Nick DeLeon (Patrick Mullins 82'), Pablo Piatti (Tsubasa Endoh 67'), Alejandro Pozuelo, Ayo Akinola

Substitutes Not Used: Kevin Silva, Laurent Ciman, Tony Gallacher, Erickson Gallardo, Liam Fraser, Ralph Priso, Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty

NY RED BULLS - Ryan Meara; Kyle Duncan, Tim Parker, Amro Tarek, Jason Pendant; Jared Stroud (Caden Clark 59'), Dru Yearwood, Florian Valot, Marc Rzatkowski (Sean Davis 82'); Brian White (Daniel Royer 59'), Tom Barlow (Samuel Tetteh 68')

Substitutes Not Used: David Jensen, Mandela Egbo, Aaron Long, Sean Nealis, Mathias Jorgensen

GREG VANNEY - HEAD COACH, TORONTO FC

On the Red Bulls goal, it's a spectacular strike, but could your players have done a better job of nipping that play in the bud?

"Yeah possibly, I mean I would like to get pressure to the ball. When you play the Red Bulls it's all about where you lose the ball and we lost the ball in our half of the field, which turns into a little bit of a quick counter where we have to reorganize and figure out how to get pressure to the ball. I have to see it again to see who should have stepped, and what happened but...it's a great strike too. So, you have to give credit for that. But we should have gotten out of that transition and not lost the ball in the position that we did and then we put ourselves into a defending scenario in transition and we didn't get pressure to the ball. So now, having said that, we had more than enough chances in the game ... especially leading up to that point ... that it would've been nice to pick up the second one. I think that would have iced it for us. But I'm proud of the guys to put in a shift today because this is a game on three days rest and the fourth one in a series of five here and the guys battled. No matter what Red Bulls team, they're always gonna be chaotic. They're just launching the ball up the field. You have to win first balls and second balls. If you try to get pressure to the ball then they're gonna try to play through, over the top and pick up second balls so it's always going to be a little bit funky and tonight we lost a few too many balls in our half of the field that we don't like to lose. A couple guys taking too many touches and getting caught in possession that led to transitions. But having said all that, we had four quality chances to get ahold of the game on the second goal and just weren't able to put it away."

Given the schedule did you expect this game to be a grind?

"I was concerned about this game. We've been on a great run. They're a team coming off of one day extra of rest. There were a number of other things that concerned me a little bit about this game, as it being one where we really needed to try to get on the other side of it in a positive way. Every point matters, so I'm not going say anything bad about us being able to take a point away tonight, which is a good thing. Now, we get the extra day of recovery and as we go into the final game of the stretch, we'll get guys turned around and a group ready to compete again on Sunday. So, every point matters. So that's critical. Our guys are disappointed because they want to win every game and we had the chances to win the game. That's the way we look at it but we're going to regroup. We will be ready to go for the next one against Atlanta."

You've been able to win a lot of 1-0 games, but does that become tough to do repeatedly?

"Yeah, for sure. I would say especially against a team like the Red Bulls who are super opportunistic. That's their whole game for ninety minutes, it is about being opportunistic. It's about second balls, transitions, short possessions where they can win the ball in turnovers in the attacking half of the field. Or if they can clean up a second ball when they lump it up to the forwards, then they're trying to play for direct off of that. And set pieces obviously. So, for them, those are the moments they play for. That's the whole style. And so, they're trying to create a little bit of chaos within the game and utilize those transitions and so that's the team that you always want to put away when you have the opportunity. Because the game never looks as clean as you'd like it to, especially when you have guys with a little bit-tired legs and just are not as sharp, as clean as you would like them to be. For sure, you want to get the second one and you want to try to put the distance in between when you have those opportunities."

QUENTIN WESTBERG - GOALKEEPER, TORONTO FC

Red Bulls goal was a terrific strike into the top corner, could anyone of stopped that?

"I wish I had. Sometimes you need to give the goal scorer credit for doing what he did, and I think that's the case tonight. It looks like he turned in a very tight space and in a small pocket and he released a nice strike. I wish I made the save but sometimes you need to appreciate the game and goods goals being scored and I think tonight, this young guy had a banger, so congrats to him. It's just unfortunate it happened against us but in the end, I love soccer, when I look back, I think it's a beautiful goal."

In a game where you made a number of good, key saves, do you let that goal linger in your mind or do you get on with it and take solace in the fact that you kept the team in the match?

"As soon as you take it, it's part of the past. You maybe take 5-10 seconds to reassess to realize it, but it's onto the next. I like to think my position in particular you need to be struck by amnesia a little bit. You need to forget on one hand the good saves but also the mistakes or goals taken, you need to concentrate on your task and do what's necessary for the team and make good decisions. If you want to make good decisions, you need to have a clear mind so whether I take a goal or whether I make a save it's all part of the past as soon as it's done. Being as calm as possible, being as lucid as possible to make good decisions, to give good information and if you're still under the emotion of this or that then maybe you're taking away a little something that can create another chance for the opponent or that can create a little bit of frustration for your teammates or yourself. As soon as it hits the net it's finished and it's onto the next task."

What were some factors that decided the game tonight?

"There are a few, but it was a particular style of play they have and we were well prepared, we knew they were going to come out hard or it was a possibility, which they did, they were very aggressive but they still left us with a few chances in transition, so it was a game of styles. For sure, we didn't play our best football tonight, but we did alright adapting. We created chances without possession which is always a good sign but also it's a little different for us to not have the ball that much and it was a challenge, it was a challenge for sure and you need to give the Red Bulls some credit for their mentality and their efforts. They created a lot of chaos and trouble for us but at the same time, playing the long game, I like our style of play better and we just need to be very well aware that whatever the conditions, whatever the press, whatever the team this is where we find refuge, our style of play, our possession based football, our position football needs to be established whatever the context."

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