The Basics
CONCACAF Champions League, Group A, Match Day 2
Toronto FC (7W-5D-8L, 26 points, third place in MLS Eastern Conference) vs. Árabe Unido (3W-0D-1L, 9 points, first place in Liga Panameña Apertura 2010) at Estadio Agustin Sanchez, Panamá.
The two teams have never faced each other.
BROADCAST INFO
Game Intro
With only six games in the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League, each match is significant.
Toronto FC have an opportunity to jump out to a six-point lead in Group A and put some distance between themselves and the group favorites. A win would also recall the Montreal Impact’s run to the 2008-09 Champions League quarterfinals – a goal many at Toronto FC players have said they’d like to replicate and surpass.
A victory would also be welcome development considering MLS clubs have drawn ire over the last couple of years for not faring well in the tournament.
Árabe Unido
Árabe Unido come into the game off a 2-1 loss to defending MLS champion Real Salt Lake in the group stage opener for both teams. The Panamanian side took the lead, but wilted in the end, falling a man short and conceding the tying and winning goals Alvaro Saborio.
Despite the defeat at Rio Tinto Stadium, Árabe Unido are undefeated in the Liga Panameña de Fútbol, with three wins and a draw in their first four games of the 2010 Apertura tournament. Right back Nahil Carroll and central defender Andrés Santamaría, who were both sent off against RSL, will not play against Toronto.
Toronto FC
Enigmatic is an understatement for a team that’s coming off the high of a CCL win over group favorite Cruz Azul last week and a bad 4-1 loss to the New York Red Bulls in league play last Saturday.
Toronto surprised many in their upset of Cruz Azul, taking it to the Mexican club from the start. They will look to build on that CCL victory as they play the first of three straight matches in that tournament away from home.
The game is the third of four in just 11 days for TFC. And with only two days off and coming off a long flight, fatigue may be a factor going in against Árabe Unido.
Striker Chad Barrett returned from injury against New York, but Maicon Santos is still out with a knee injury.
Heroes & Villains
Dwayne De Rosario vs. Armando Cooper: The game could boil down to a battle of strikers, with Toronto's De Rosario facing 22-year-old Cooper, who has already played more than 100 games for Árabe Unido in his career. Cooper scored the lone goal against RSL and his speed and youth will be a threat up front. The limited rest and arduous travel may affect De Rosario’s energy, but his hustle, determination and passion are strong equalizers.
Stat that makes you go “Hmm..."
Toronto FC have a record of 2W-2D-1L in CONCACAF Champions League play and have no wins and two draws away from BMO Field.
