The Reds go for three-straight wins as they close out their home stand against Orlando City SC. Here are the Benjamin Moore three keys to the match.
Limiting Larin
A week after taking on the league’s leading scorer in Erick Torres, Toronto FC will face perhaps an even sterner test in Cyle Larin. The Canadian international has been one of the most lethal goal scorers in MLS since his Rookie of the Year campaign in 2015, and is only getting better.
Currently sitting on six goals for the year, Larin works best as a target striker using his big frame to bully defenders while still being crafty enough to slip into dangerous areas behind the defence.
He’s a handful on set pieces, meaning TFC will have to clamp down on any dead ball situations in their half. Limiting service into the striker will be key as Larin is far less effective when asked to create his own shot.
Winning Out Wide
Building off that last key, the Reds will look to continue their dominance on the wings. By cutting off dangerous balls into the box from wide areas, Orlando City will lose one of their biggest assets.
Raheem Edwards and Steven Beitashour have been instrumental in TFC’s recent success as the Reds have stretched defenses from touchline to touchline. Like the Dynamo last week, OCSC will employ a fairly narrow diamond midfield, making wing play all the more important.
Build Off of Last Game
If it ain’t broke…
The Reds are flying high on the heels of back-to-back wins against Chicago and Houston, and they’d like to see more of the same on Wednesday night.
Greg Vanney has rolled out identical starting XI’s in each of those games, giving TFC a nice bit of consistency amidst a tough stretch of games.
While approaching both of their last two matches differently, the commonality lies in their decisiveness on the ball and their ability to quicken the tempo to crack open the defence in both of their last two wins. If they can replicate that blueprint against Orlando, they could be well on their way to a perfect nine points from the home stand.
