quarta-feira, 30 de novembro de 2016
Toronto FC 5, Montreal Impact 2 | 2016 MLS Cup Playoffs Recap
A fierce 401 rivalry, a rain-soaked second leg and a whipsaw series of scores – Toronto FC and the Montreal Impact set an MLS record for a two-game aggregate series, with 12 goals – finally crescendoed with Toronto FC scoring twice in the first 10 minutes of extra time to reach MLS Cup 2016.
Following Wednesday's wild 5-2 Leg 2 victory – and 7-5 aggregate win – TFC will host Seattle Sounders FC on Dec.10 (8pm ET; FOX, UniMás | TSN, RDS in Canada) at BMO Field. It will be the first appearance in the domestic final for each team: Toronto entered the league in 2007; Seattle followed in 2009. It will also mark the first time an MLS original franchise will not compete for MLS Cup.
Opportunity offered one of TFC's subs the chance to star, when a calf cramp sent Sebastian Giovinco to the sidelines in the 97th minute. Benoit Cheyrou stepped on the field and headed home the game-winning goal in the 98th. Tosaint Ricketts sealed it two minutes after that, following an astounding hold-up effort by Jozy Altidore.
The Impact broke through first, absorbing waves of pressure to convert a perfectly played counter. Patrice Bernier won a 50-50 ball, hit Matteo Mancosu upfield in space, where the Italian striker drove at the back line, finding a pocket between five defenders to slip a ball through to Dominic Oduro, whose cool finish put Toronto on its heels.
But in the 37th minute, Sebastian Giovinco put a corner kick on Nick Hagglund's head. And though Impact defender Hernan Bernardello cleared it off the line, Armando Cooper was there to gather and put the rebound past goalkeeper Evan Bush.
Just before the half, Altidore and Giovinco freelanced – chatting and then changing a corner kick call – resulting in a low line drive that Altidore angled past Bush with a full-speed header as he crossed in front of Mancosu.
Montreal stunned the home crowd early in the second half, when halftime sub Johan Venegashit star midfielder Ignacio Piatti as he split the defense. Piatti angled a shot to the right, but it deflected off a TFC defender, catching Clint Irwin wrong-footed as the ball trickled across the goal line for an equalizer.
A short corner give-and-go from Cooper to Justin Morrow and back set up a Hagglund header that again put Toronto ahead, and locked the aggregate score at 5, forcing extra time.
More to come …
Box Score
- 24' – MTL – Dominic Oduro (Matteo Mancosu)
- 37' – TOR – Armando Cooper
- 45' – TOR – Jozy Altidore (Sebastian Giovinco)
- 53' – MTL – Ignacio Piatti (Johan Venegas)
- 68' – TOR – Nick Hagglund (Justin Morrow)
- 98' – TOR – Benoit Cheyrou (Steven Beitashour)
- 100' – TOR – Tosaint Ricketts (Jozy Altidore)
- Full Box Score
- Stats
Unyielding dominance: Jozy Altidore thunders TFC to MLS Cup Final
Jozy Altidore took brash to the next level, in turn driving Toronto FC to its first MLS Cup final.
The American striker knew his team was down 3-2 after one leg. He also knew that Montreal’s defenders didn’t like his physical play in Quebec.
So he dug in.
Altidore told Montreal defender Victor Cabrera to “do more curls”, unapologetic for using his massive frame and electric athleticism to boss the Impact’s back line.
When play opened at a raucous BMO Field on Wednesday, Altidore delivered an irrepressible performance. From minute one, the 27-year-old USMNT striker was throwing his body around and daring someone to catch it.
This wasn’t the man who struggled to justify his $13 million price tag at Sunderland; It was the evolution of a man who bagged goals for fun at AZ Alkmaar and has a legit chance to chase down Landon Donovan as the USMNT’s all-time leading goal scorer.
There was Altidore, plowing his way through defenders to catch a ball near the end line and challenge goalkeeper Evan Bush. There he was again, going 100mph into a card-worthy collision with Hernan Bernardello.
And it wasn’t strictly enforcer business. Altidore scored a goal scorer’s goal with his header of a Sebastian Giovinco corner, then supplied an extra time assists as Tossaint Rickets put this one to bed.
Like he had done all season, Altidore celebrated with the fans and praised their fortitude following the win. TFC hadn’t just been bad for most of their existence; The Reds were awful. A passionate fan base had learned to expect very little from big name signings, at least until the past two seasons.
“It’s all for their fans. They suffered a long time. To deliver the type of season we had, it means a lot.”
And the fans had. They needed a bull to pull them through their struggles. While Toronto as a city likes to think of itself as the playmaking wizardry of Sebastian Giovinco, Altidore did it for the blue collar types.
For my Ontario hockey types, he rolled Wendel Clark, Mats Sundin, and Gary Roberts into one package, and spit out something Leafs fans haven’t seen since 1967: an appearance in a championship game.
TFC will be at home come Dec. 10, and the focus will be on electric imports Sebastian Giovinco (if he’s healthy) and Nicolas Lodeiro. Fans will bring up the names of Michael Bradley and Jordan Morris.
But it’s the big striker, on the heels of a roller coaster European adventure, who got them there. On Wednesday night in Canada, Josmer Volmy Altidore was an absolute monster.
WATCH: Chapecoense saluted by full stadium of Atletico Nacional fans in Colombia
The first leg of the Copa Sudamericana final was supposed to be played Wednesday at the Estadio Atanasio Girardot in Medellin.
It didn’t happen. Chapecoense never made it to Colombia to face Atletico Nacional, a plane crash taking the lives of 71 in the Andes Mountains.
Atletico fans, however, showed up to salute the lives lost by their opponents, the latest bright moment in one of the darkest incidents in soccer history.
The crowd provided visceral scenes.
TUNISIA: Tunisia Cup - finished
| DrawTUNISIA: Tunisia Cup | ||||||||
| 09:30 | Finished | AS Marsa | 3 - 0 | Sfax Railways | (2 - 0) | |||
| 09:30 | Finished | Badr El Ain | 0 - 4 | Esperance Tunis | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | Bembla | 0 - 5 | Club Africain | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | Ben Guerdane | 7 - 2 | Sidi Bou Ali | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | Djelma | 1 - 2 | Msaken | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | Djerba | 1 - 0 | Olympique Beja | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | Gafsa | 0 - 1 | JS Kairouan | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | Haffouz | 0 - 1 | Metlaoui | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | Metouia | 0 - 1 | US Tataouine | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | Moknine | 0 - 1 | Hammamet | ||||
| 09:30 | Finished | NA Bouhjar | 0 - 1 | Stade Gabesien | ||||
| 09:30 | After Pen. | Sfaxien | 2 - 3 (2 - 2) | Hammam-Lif | (0 - 0) | |||
| 09:30 | After ET | Sporting Ben Arous | 0 - 2 (0 - 0) | Bizertin | (0 - 0) | |||
| 09:30 | Finished | Widad Sers | 2 - 1 | Progres Sakiet | ||||
| 09:30 | After ET | Zarzis | 3 - 1 (1 - 1) | Gabes | (0 - 1) | |||
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