Rev previews tonight's Union match. These are his words.
For
the first time in their brief history the Union will have the
opportunity
to get all hopped up on Tim Hortons coffee and doughnuts, as they head
into Canada to take on Toronto FC at BMO Field (7:00PM/ESPN2). The
Union,
fresh off Saturday’s first win in franchise history, try to pick up
their first road point(s) against an 0-2 Toronto side, which has been
outscored 6-1 thus far this season.
The
Union obviously hope to maintain the momentum they created in an
impressive
performance against D.C. United. Introducing Cristian Arrieta and Fred into the starting eleven stabilized things across
the entire field on Saturday night. Based on the quality and amount
of possession, and the discipline shown in maintaining their shape,
I’d be surprised if Peter Nowak didn’t trot out the same starting
lineup against Toronto. From my vantage point there was not a single
player who failed to show well, and would warrant being relegated to
the substitution bench.
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What
can I tell you about Toronto? Well, this will be the first game played
on the new grass pitch installed at BMO Field. For all of you MLS
handicappers
out there you should know that the Union are undefeated all-time on
the natural stuff (1-0). However, I would not be doing my job if I
failed
to mention that the Union have never won a game on a weeknight (0-1
all-time). Note, the nice thing about following an expansion side is
that I am wholly independent in my ability to track trends. Take that
Elias Sports Bureau. At this point I am the John Nash (the guy from
A Beautiful Mind; not the former 76ers GM) of Union stats and trends.
Right,
I suppose I should resume discussing what you should look for from
Toronto.
They feature Canadian international and MLS stalwart Dwayne De Rosario.
Since joining MLS in 2001 De Rosario has scored 81 goals in all
competitions.
He’s scored some truly highlight reel goals throughout his career,
and is not afraid to drive a ball on net from distance (including this one from 60+ yards as a member of the Houston
Dynamo). Not surprisingly, De Rosario has scored Toronto’s lone goal
this season. What else? They are coached by former MLS playing great
Preki, who sits in tenth place all-time in regular season MLS goals
scored.
Toronto
made one of the more surprising offseason moves when they sent former
MLS Super Draft number one overall pick defender Marvell Wynne (yes,
the son of former MLB player Marvell Wynne) to Colorado in exchange
for midfielder Nick LaBrocca. The trade was completed on March 25th,
just days before each team opened their season. Aside from the trade
being surprising in terms of timing, it was shocking to see Toronto
give up on a young outside back with as much pace as Wynne. I’ll be
the first to admit that Wynne has been awful in his appearances with
the USMNT, but to trade away a 23 year old former first overall pick
was shocking. This is especially true considering they’ve already
conceded six goals in over just two games. Thus far LaBrocca has started
News
one game, and come off the bench in another.
The
dimensions of BMO Field are in keeping with FIFA regulations, which
means that Roger Torres and the Union will have plenty of width to play
with. Hopefully Nowak will stress the importance of stretching out
Toronto
width-wise thereby enabling Torres and the rest of the midfielders to
exploit the additional space. Look for Moreno to continue making runs
checking back to the ball then looking to play a ball into space for
an overlapping run by the outside backs. The width should allow the
outside backs get forward and put pressure on Toronto’s back four.
I am also anxious to see how Seitz recovers from his gaffe, legal or
not, against D.C. It’d be nice to see him put in a commanding
performance
where he controls his box and makes smart decisions with his
distribution.
I liked just about everything I saw from the Union last time out, and
I do not see why they’ll be unable to get out of Toronto with at least
a point. Oh, and in good conscience I could not go an entire Union post
without mentioning Jack McInerney. So, Jack McInerney. With that out
of the way I can give you my final score for tonight.
FINAL SCORE PREDICTION:
Union win it 2-0.
Photo by Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images