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A reeling Toronto FC squad arrived in Chicago on Saturday for an evening fixture against the Fire at Toyota Park, a pitch on which the Reds had never previously won.
With Toronto having stumbled badly in their first two games under new Head Coach Greg Vanney, the TFC gaffer made significant changes to his starting eleven and had his troops set up in a new 4-1-4-1 formation. Left back Justin Morrow returned from injury and started in central defense in place of the suspended Doneil Henry, while Warren Creavalle got the start as the sole holding midfielder shielding the back line.
The Opening 45
The first half kicked off with Chicago having all the early chances and Toronto looking like a side without any confidence.
The Fire had a decent chance in the 10th minute when midfielder Grant Ward delivered a cross that forward Quincy Amarikwa shot right into the arms of TFC keeper Joe Bendik.
Chicago opened the scoring in the 11th minute after a short pass on a corner kick, with Sanna Nyassi delivering a cross that an unmarked Lovel Palmer headed past Bendik into the TFC net.
With the Fire pressing for a second goal, Toronto looked toothless and devoid of any ideas offensively, with the Reds best chance coming when Bradley set up Jackson for a shot, but with the Brazilian’s characteristically poor touch snuffing out the opportunity.
Chicago had an excellent chance to double their lead in the 44th minute, but Bendik came up big 1v1 against Fire midfielder Alex.
The Second Half
Toronto continued to struggle for much of the second half, with the Fire dominating the run of the play and the Reds unable to find a way to trouble Chicago keeper Sean Johnson.
The Fire looked certain to double their lead in the 56th minute when Toronto were unable to clear the ball and Bendik pulled down Ward in the TFC penalty area. However, the Reds keeper came up with two massive saves – stopping the penalty kick by Jeff Larentowicz and then the follow up attempt.
Vanney looked to inject some life into the Reds by bringing on Dwayne De Rosario, Luke Moore and Dan Lovitz. Those moves did not pay off until the 89th minute when De Rosario scored his first goal of the season after a scramble in the box following a Toronto corner kick.
With Toronto suddenly looking alive and not at all content with a draw, a fantastic ball by Michael Bradley and a tenacious effort by Gilberto looked like it had resulted in a dramatic game-winning goal by the Brazilian. However, referee David Gantar called off the goal due to a perceived foul by Gilberto on the play, with the instant replays showing that the official had made a clear mistake that would cost Toronto a much needed victory.
Man of the Match
Joe Bendik
For the third straight match Joe Bendik was the team’s best player over ninety minutes. The TFC keeper kept his side in the match until the final minute with a number of big saves and a huge stop on a penalty kick by Jeff Larentowicz.
Honourable mention
After a first half performance in which Toronto looked truly defeated, Dwayne De Rosario came on in the second half and injected life into a moribund squad. The Canadian International displayed fight and determination and scored a huge goal for the Reds.
After not receiving a lick of service for most of the game, Gilberto scored a hard fought and dramatic game-winning goal in the final minutes of the match. The fact that it doesn’t count due to a referee error does not take away the fact that he did it.
Michael Bradley also showed determination and desire throughout the match. His pass to Gilberto on the disallowed goal was something deserving of an assist and three points.
As for referee Dave Gantar, he once again highlighted the sheer incompetence of the Professional Referee Organization (PRO). How the majority of the referees who oversee Major League Soccer matches still have jobs working in the North American top flight is mind-boggling. Simply put, Gantar needs to be held accountable by the league for such a shockingly bad decision on the goal by Gilberto. Overall, Major League Soccer needs to do something about the quality of its officiating. It was clearly much better when the PRO referees were on strike earlier in the season. Much better.
Toronto FC Line-up
12 Joe Bendik
5 Ashtone Morgan
2 Justin Morrow
17 Nick Hagglund
28 Mark Bloom
8 Kyle Bekker
3 Warren Creavalle
4 Michael Bradley
23 Dominic Oduro
11 Jackson
9 Gilberto
Substitutions: De Rosario for Oduro; Moore for Creavalle (59); Lovitz for Bekker.
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