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Toronto FC (2) - Columbus Crew SC (2) Post Game Summary

August 17, 2019 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Toronto FC News Release


TORONTO FC (2) - COLUMBUS CREW SC (2) POST GAME SUMMARY

SCORING SUMMARY

TFC - Jonathan Osorio 42' (Jozy Altidore)

CLM - Pedro Santos 48' (Wil Trapp)

CLM - David Accam 82' (Harrison Afful)

TFC - Jozy Altidore 90' (Auro, Marky Delgado)

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY

CLM - Jonathan Mensah 90'+2 (caution)

RECORDS

TORONTO FC 9-10-7 34 points

COLUMBUS CREW SC 7-14-6 27 points

LINEUPS

TORONTO FC - Quentin Westberg; Auro, Omar Gonzalez, Chris Mavinga, Justin Morrow (Richie Laryea HT'); Nick DeLeon (Marky Delgado 59'), Jonathan Osorio, Michael Bradley (C), Alejandro Pozuelo; Patrick Mullins (Drew Moor 72'), Jozy Altidore

Substitutes Not Used: Alex Bono, Tsubasa Endoh, Erickson Gallardo, Nicolas Benezet

COLUMBUS - Eloy Room; Harrison Afful, Jonathan Mensah, Josh Williams, Connor Maloney (David Accam 80'); Wil Trapp (C), Artur, Luis Diaz (Romario Williams 79'), Pedro Santos, Youness Mokhtar (Luis Argudo 67'); Gyasi Zardes

Substitutes Not Used: Jon Kempin, Alex Crognale, Eduardo Sosa, David Guzman

GREG VANNEY - HEAD COACH, TORONTO FC

On if the club is getting close to where he wants it to be

I think there are signs. The challenge that we are having is when the game changes and adapts, and they run a play. We've got to adapt with the game and regain the balance of power. We set up some things in the first half where we thought we were able to break them down, overload certain spaces that we saw in the build up to the game and the preparation. But as they adjust, we need to continue to adjust. We need to keep numbers higher on the field. I felt like too many of our passes from the backline to the midfield were still in front of their midfielders, and so we were finding passes in front of the midfielder instead of passes behind the midfield and finding them there so we could unbalance the back four. We just didn't create enough problems for them because everything was in front of them. So again, it's once the game starts and being able to read things and adapt into the game. That's the piece with this group that connected together that we've got to continue to build on. Like I said, there are good moments, but there are also coupled with moments that aren't good enough.

On Jozy Altidore being more than just a goal scorer

Jozy can do anything he wants on the field, that's the way it goes. He has enough physical presence and technique to do whatever he wants. Again, the key is getting him the ball. The key is finding him in the right places. The key is running off of him. The key is we get numbers so that we can find him in situations that are advantageous for him. We got to put crosses in front of the box like Auro did to give ourselves a chance to get on the end of them. As a group we just have to keep working and adapting through the game. For Jozy, it's a good night from that perspective.

On how close Erickson Gallardo and Nicolas Benezet are to taking to the field

They're both guys [Erickson Gallardo and Nicolas Benezet] that I really expected to play tonight, but neither of them are really a defensive minded player. I felt like in the second half specifically, I didn't know that we could turn the game around from an attacking perspective, I felt like we needed to plug holes. Gyasi was getting chances, and we needed to have a solution. If we were to have been more patient with the ball, and we would have been setting up a little better for our attackers involved in the game, then for me it would have been the right situation for Gallardo or Benezet. A lot of the interchanges were happening on that right side, which meant there needed to be communication. So from that perspective I slid Jonathan [Osorio] over there so that he and Richie [Laryea] would hopefully be able to communicate through some of those scenarios a little bit cleaner and that's the reason. I had every intention for those guys to play tonight, but then when you start weighing out how the game was looking and going, I just felt like we needed something different.

JONATHAN OSORIO - MIDFIELDER, TORONTO FC

On scoring against Crew SC

More than anything I'm just happy to help the team. For me it doesn't matter who scores the goals. Of course, I'm happy that I could help the team that way this game. It's been tough for me this year I think, physically, but today I felt good. It's too bad we couldn't walk away with three points.

On whether losing the lead in the second half impacted the team's morale

Yeah of course, anytime you lose the lead in a span of ten minutes in the beginning of the second half it's hard, it's hard to come back from. But, credit to us, we kept fighting and we did get an equalizer to get a point out of it, but I think if we look at the bigger picture it feels more like two points dropped.

On whether Toronto FC can make a playoff run

Of course. How can you not? How can you not look around this locker room and believe that you're a playoff team? But it's one thing believing in it and saying it and it's another thing showing it. We have to show it on the field. That's the last thing we have to do and we have to realize we have a big chance. If we turn that switch, a lot of things can happen for this club.

JOZY ALTIDORE - FORWARD, TORONTO FC

On getting a draw on the road

It just makes each game more important. It's sometimes discouraging but I think we're moving in the right direction as we're gaining points here at the end of the year.

On Toronto FC not playing consistent in both halves

Yeah, it's difficult, it's difficult when you dominate games the way we dominate. But it's hard, you know we're not the same team in the sense of some of the quality we used to have where you dominate for a lot of points in the game and we're just able to not come away with anything. Today we were and second half was our Achilles heel. Again, the first two minutes wasn't good enough. Like I said before, the fact that we stayed in the game, being able to get the goal at the end was huge and it sets up for another huge game with a team [Montreal Impact] directly in front of us and they're coming to Toronto, so we have to make it a difficult place for them to play.

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