New York City FC fell to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Toronto FC on Saturday night.
Rounding up a tough day for the Boys in Blues, here’s Five Points presented by Etihad Airways…
No Panic
Two games, two 0-1 defeats, but no one is reaching for the panic button on the NYC side.
City were unfortunate to fall again on Saturday as Toronto were able to find the only goal late in a tight and often feisty encounter at BMO Field.
Ifunanyachi Achara scored the night’s only goal with 10’ remaining, just when it looked as though the Boys in Blue would get at least a point out of their second road trip.
It wasn’t to be, but Ronny Deila was not too downcast and will hope to record his first MLS points as Head Coach vs. FC Dallas next time out in front of our supporters.
Second Half Improvement
For Ronny, it was the first half performance which was most disappointing, but he was pleased with the reaction after the interval.
The Norwegian told reporters: “They played through us and got pressure on us, but I think when we went out in the second half, we were much better in a 20 minutes period there.
“We created a big chance with Jesus and then the game was very even but, in the end, they had a couple more chances.”
Grudge Match
Players spoke of a desire for revenge in the buildup to the match after Toronto ended City’s Playoff dreams in 2019, but despite a ton of effort, Deila’s men fell just short.
NYCFC vs. TFC is quickly turning into a grudge match, with a series of bruising encounters going both ways in the brief history of this fixture.
While the Boys in Blue couldn’t throw it back to Greg Vanney’s men on this occasion, a regular season win doesn’t equal a couple of Playoff defeats anyway, so let’s get ‘em next time… and then again in the postseason if it lines up that way again…
Bright Spots
Despite the result, there were some strong individual performances in the match, especially from a defensive point of view as City stood up stoutly through a couple of periods of intense pressure.
Goalkeeper Sean Johnson was one of those who emerged with credit after making eight saves on his 101st MLS appearance for NYC, while James Sands, who dropped into the back four in place of the suspended Maxime Chanot, battled manfully vs. one of the league’s most physical and wily strikers, Jozy Altidore.
That resilience will likely hold NYC in good stead in the challenges ahead, especially in the Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League which is up next.
Homecoming Week
Onto Homecoming Week, which climaxes with the 2020 Home Opener vs. FC Dallas on Saturday and also features the small matter of a Champions League quarterfinal vs. Tigres UANL on Wednesday night.
It’s a busy week with plenty on the line but Ronny wouldn’t have it any other way.
He said: “[Two games this week] is no problem, that’s good. That’s four days until the next game now. We want to get out and get winning. It’s going to be a big game on Wednesday and I’m looking forward to it.”
Let’s get it, New York.
