Toronto FC (3W-3L-1T, 10 points) fell to a 4-0 loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday night at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia.
First Half:
Toronto FC Head Coach John Herdman made four changes to the side that took on Sporting Kansas City at home last weekend with Sean Johnson, Nicksoen Gomis, Deybi Flores and Deandre Kerr replacing Luka Gavran, Sigurd Rosted, Alonso Coello and Prince Owusu to start the all-Canadian affair. The hosts raced into an early lead on the night, when Vancouver scored the opening goal through forward Brian White in the sixth minute of action.
Looking for a quick equalizer, the Reds carved out two goalscoring opportunities that tested the Whitecaps’ defensive resolve within the next twenty minutes. In the 18th minute, Federico Bernardeschi laid a ball into Deandre Kerr’s path, whose shot was saved by Vancouver goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka before ricocheting off the near post twice. Nine minutes later, Kerr pounced on an under-hit back-pass from Pedro Vite to poke the ball towards goal, only for the Japanese goalkeeper to pull off a quick reflex save to deny the Homegrown forward the equalizer.
Merely two minutes later, the Whitecaps doubled their advantage when Fafà Picault’s header from Alessandro Schöpf’s cross found the back of the visitors’ net and led to the hosts maintaining the 2-0 lead heading into the half-time interval.
Second Half:
Toronto FC made a switch to begin the second half, with Kosi Thompson, making his 50th appearance for the Reds, coming on to replace Shane O’Neill. In the 63rd minute, TFC had another goalscoring opportunity denied when Tyrese Spicer’s goalbound header, from Kevin Long’s headed pass, was cleared in front of the net by Vancouver’s Brian White.
Eager to cut into the hosts’ two-goal lead, Toronto introduced Alonso Coello, Prince Owusu, Ayo Akinola and Cassius Mailula off the bench through the second half. The hosts, however, doubled their lead with two goals in quick succession when Whitecaps captain Ryan Gauld scored in the 81st minute before Ranko Veselinović scored the fourth and final goal of the night in the 89th minute.
The Reds return to action when the club visits Charlotte FC on Saturday, April 13 for their fifth road contest of the season. Kick-off from Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast globally on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
LINEUPS
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC – Yohei Takaoka; Mathías Laborda, Ranko Veselinović, Bjørn Inge Utvik (Tristan Blackmon 72’); Ali Ahmed (Ryan Raposo 62’), Andrés Cubas (Ralph Priso 84’), Pedro Vite (Sam Adekugbe 72’), Alessandro Schöpf; Ryan Gauld (C) (Levonte Johnson 85’), Fafà Picault, Brian White
Substitutes Not Used: Isaac Boehmer, Javain Brown, Sebastian Berhalter, Damir Kreilach
TORONTO FC – Sean Johnson; Shane O’Neill (Kosi Thompson 46’), Kevin Long, Nicksoen Gomis (Ayo Akinola 79’); Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, Matty Longstaff (Alonso Coello 65’), Deybi Flores (Prince Owusu 71’), Jonathan Osorio (C), Tyrese Spicer; Deandre Kerr (Cassius Mailula 79’); Federico Bernardeschi
Substitutes Not Used: Luka Gavran, Aimé Mabika, Sigurd Rosted, Kobe Franklin
NOTABLES:
- Kosi Thompson made his 50th appearance for Toronto FC across all competitions, becoming the eighth current TFC player (Jonathan Osorio, Richie Laryea, Ayo Akinola, Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, Deandre Kerr, Federico Bernardeschi and Shane O’Neill) to reach the milestone.
- Cassius Mailula made his first appearance of the 2024 MLS season for Toronto FC.
POSTMATCH SOUND
- Link to be added.
