Toronto Postmatch

[NYCFC_Dan]

Did a great job securing the point there.
Did a great job coming out with anything with all the changes in the lineup. Loving the CB pairing of Brillant and Hernandez.
Goal was due White playing Toronto player onside. But a well played goal on their part.
Happy with the result and going into Saturday with some rested starters.

 

[Keith Putnam]

First in the East!

 

[SFphoto]

Second half was lifeless. But I'll take a draw away at Toronto with our B team every day of the week. 7 of a possible 9 points on a road trip is fantastic.

Derby day lets goooooooooooooo!

 

[Seven]

Kept Giovinco off the scoresheet. I'd say that's a win for the defense

 

[dannd23]

Away points are huge in MLS. Beat Red Bull and we are looking at the best run in NYCFC's history.

Poku's goal was great but was ineffective otherwise. With that said, he definitely deserves to be one of the first offensive subs we use strictly for that ability.

I will also admit I bashed Brillant after first Chicago match but he has been excellent.

Saunders is the reason for the point.

 

[Albany_NYCFC]

Dare I say Saunders MOTM????

 

[Gene]

Road match.......playing 2nd and 3rd string players.......kept Giovinco off the score sheet.......

Can't ask for more. Excellent result boys!

 

[Yankeedom]

Great point on the road! I've never seen/heard a ref blow his whistle so many times on throw-ins.

 

[bxsully]

Solid effort by the B squad. Hernandez and Brillant have turned into a solid pairing. Man but Iraloa looks bad when he comes on.

 

[hiller87]

didn't lose to a really good Toronto team, more or less stopped Giovinco, and it was with our bench lineup

I also think that if our bench guys could do that at Toronto that we could actually do decent in the US Open this year

The other thing that I was thinking during the game was that even though Hernandez and Brillant both struggled at times to start the season, I'm glad PV stuck with them and gave them opportunities to play together and grow. Last year Kreis was rotating guys until like July and no one really had any sort of rhythm

 

[sbrylski]

Can't be upset at all with the result tonight. A few player observations:

Good

Credit when due, I have zero complaints from Saunders tonight. He was all of the good and none of bad tonight. Partly because we are no longer asking him to participate from the back, and partly because his positioning was very sound tonight.

Hernandez, Brillant, and Bravo shut them down. I was watching Bravo closely tonight, and he handled his tasks extremely well. The centerbacks played with confidence again. Love it.

Bad

Three of our last five goals surrendered were the direct fault of White, and he's not even a starter. Against Montreal, he was the closest mark to the stoppage time equalizer. Against Vancouver, he had a silly tackle in the box that led to a penalty. And tonight, he let two players past him on their goal. Plus, if he had hustled back to the line, he still had a chance to disrupt Toronto, but he just stood there and watch. Awful.

Are there any Mix defenders left? He did very little tonight and was dispossessed four times. Zero key passes. One shot on a ball that just happened to bounce right to him. I no longer care if he starts or sits.

Up front, Mullins and Mendoza kind of showed why they stay on the bench. Mullins is streaky. He'll string together some good plays, but he doesn't give off a very threatening vibe in general. I like that he uses his physicality, but it doesn't lead to anything too often. Mendoza has speed, yes, but he always slows down the play once he gets it in the corner. Then half the time passes it away and the other half just gets dispossessed.

 

[PaddingtonB.]

I'll take the point.

 

[Lasker]

didn't lose to a really good Toronto team, more or less stopped Giovinco, and it was with our bench lineup

I also think that if our bench guys could do that at Toronto that we could actually do decent in the US Open this year

I had the same thought about the USOC. We may not have the best first team, but who in the league has a better 2nd team?

 

[Kenny]

Are there any Mix defenders left?

There are and I think it is because last year he was one of the bright spots. But at this point something is very wrong because he is ineffectual and we need more from that position.

 

[dannd23]

Bravo was a beast tonight also.

Have never understood the Mix bashing and still don't. He wasn't incredible tonight but he played awesome in the first half and you have to remember who he was going toe-to-toe with most the game: Michael Bradley. He definitely did not play well in the second half, I will admit. He's a lot like Mikey Lopez, except with actual skill on the ball.. I doubt he will start next one after playing back to back shifts like he has, but he should definitely come on at least as a sub and start after that.

 

[Seth]

My condolences to all the Saunders haters out there.

#dontMindMeJustTrollingALittle

 

[Dreid]

Haven't done one of these in a while so here we go:

Player Ratings:

GK Saunders- 7.5- MOTM- Terrific performance from our Puerto Rican shot stopper. Made SEVERAL very key stops including some excellent saves. His early season wobbles seem pretty distant history by now. Saunders is coming into fine form.

D Hernandez- 6.5- Arguably partially at fault for the goal but overall defended well over the course of the 90 min.

D Brilliant- 6.5- Another solid performance from the Frenchman. We were put under pretty sever pressure by Toronto for several stretches of the match and he and Hernandez coped well.

D Martinez- 6.0-Considering how good Matarrita has been I was expecting to be let down by Martinez but he coped well with Toronto's wide men all things considered.

D White- 6.0-This selection really puzzled me as RJ Allen and Iraola have both been excellent this season. Not sure why Vieira decided to give Ethan White the start tonight but again his performance was decent. Nothing to write home about.

M Bravo- 7.0- A one man wrecking crew in midfield. Great Performance from our #6. Absolutely killed attack after attack and came in with several key blocks as well which helped us to sustain second half pressure. Would be MOTM if not for how well Saunders played.

M Mix- 6.5- Not Mix's best game. His energy is always great but just too wasteful with his distribution in tonights match.

M Poku- 7.0- Will his goal be enough for him to get the start this weekend? Something inside me thinks no... but good for him for making a strong case for himself. A Spectacular finish indeed but then completely fell off the face of the earth for the rest of the match.

F Mendoza- 6.5- Stiven's pace is remarkable and he is always willing to use it but just did not get enough service in this match to really make it count. Personally I still prefer Shelton in this position for his added physical ability.

F Ballouchy- 5.5- Very anonymous outing for Ballouchy. With lots of competition for these wide positions, I imagine it will be a while until he gets another start.

F Mullins- 6.0- I really love what Mullins brings to the side. He is an excellent front man and would fit really well into most MLS sides but just likes a bit too direct of a game for what we are playing at the moment. Still, he did manage to win his fair share of headers, but did not get enough runners on the end of his flicks to really affect the game. Also, he really should have put away at least one of his two good chances.

Manager Vieira- 6.5- Will certainly come under criticism for the number of changes he made to the side after such a nice winning streak. Patrick obviously had one eye on the weekend when picking his team and clearly wants to make sure his best players are as fit as possible for Saturday. If we get the win, he will obviously be vindicated because a point at Toronto is not such a bad result really.

 

[Vallos]

Tonight's game is sponsored by the number five. 5 games unbeaten streak and 5 games undefeated streak vs. TFC.

 

[Dreid]

There are and I think it is because last year he was one of the bright spots. But at this point something is very wrong because he is ineffectual and we need more from that position.

Tonight wasn't his best but he has mostly been excellent this season. Mix certainly belongs in the starting 11.

 

[hiller87]

Are there any Mix defenders left?

I will defend Mix still. I don't think he's a good fit with the team (both the current players on the team or the style we play) but I thought he played well tonight. It's just hard for him because he doesn't fit with our other midfielders and with the stupidly low salary cap stuff in MLS (s/o to revs, colorado, and chicago) I think he's worth what he's being paid money wise but not worth what he's being paid for the amount of money compared to the amount available (if that makes sense.)