Hello readers and welcome back to my Football Manager Story featuring Toronto FC. A few days off work coupled with some heavy rain meant some extra FM time so here I am with another update. As we begin this final edition of the 2017 season Toronto are looking good for the MLS play-offs but have a hectic Fall Schedule which features 4 NACL games as well.
September 2017
We began the Fall season with a comfortable win over San Jose thanks to a brilliant performance by skipper Ethan White who scored 2 and was rock solid in defence. This win would give us an automatic Eastern Conference semi-final berth. We then waited two weeks for our next game due to internationals and surprisingly crashed at home losing 3-1 to Salt Lake after taking the lead through a 30 yard strike by winger Rick Verbeek. Seems the break didn’t do us any good at all.
Four days later and Mexican side Club America arrived at BMO Field for a Group A NACL clash. The visitors immediately dominated the game putting pressure on the back four especially after we lost Ethan White to injury early on. Thirty minutes in and America went ahead with a glancing header at the near post from a corner. Unexpectedly we bounced back with a goal of our own before half time with Bianchi heading in. Along range effort on the hour mark put the Mexicans back in the driving seat which seem to deflate the team…but not for long. In the 68th minute DiPlacido came on as a sub and three minutes later he went on a scintillating run from just inside America’s half and buried the ball into the corner of the net to make it 2-2 and that’s how the game would end and I was proud of our performance overall.
A fully fit David Morgan on the plane to Seattle paid dividends on the field as the youngster bagged himself a brace – including an exquisite diving header that has to have been the best I’ve seen and a perfect corner allowed Bianchi to head home the third. On the opposite coast a last minute penalty converted by DiPlacido gained all three points in a vital NACL match up with the New York Red Bulls. In a crazy game at BMO field which included 11 bookings and two Red Cards (we finished with 8 on the field) youngster Edgar Ballon stole the show with a last minute shot into the roof of the net for a 1-0 win.
Those three wins in row came at a price as the injury roster continued to grow with 7 first team players on the list.
October 2017
We stayed at home for our penultimate NACL game hosting Cost Rican side Saprissa. Harry Kane gave us an early lead with a lovely curling shot from the left side of the box that flew past the keeper who had no chance of stopping it. Aside from a couple of defensive hi-cups we very much controlled the game though Saprissa were reluctant to give up any more ground. The introduction of Adam Jackman late in the game provided enough speed down the right to unsettle our opponents and eventually created goal number two with DiPlacido side footing into the net.
The win ensured our passage through to the quarter-finals next March with a game to spare.
**New York fired their manager!
The two games leading up to the international break saw a first class performance at BMO Field with Adam Jackman running riot down the right flank setting up two goals and grabbing the other two himself. In the US capitol we were just plain unlucky, hitting the woodwork twice and having three attempts cleared off the line against second place (Eastern Conference) DC United.
There was more bad news in terms of injuries as David DiPlacido broke his ankle whilst on duty for Canada and will miss the remainder of the season which is a huge blow to out title hopes.
Canada’s poor form in the Gold Cup continued on through its World Cup campaign losing five straight games. The 4-0 loss to Costa Rica would prove to be the final nail in the coffin for head coach Nick DiSantis.
With CV’s pouring in from around the world I quickly faxed mine off to the CSA headquarters in Ottawa and……
GOTCHA!!!
** Authors note
Finally after so many successful seasons in the MLS I’ve reached what I set out to achieve as mentioned in the very first post of this story….
“In real life I have dual citizenship so I’ve selected myself as Canadian for this story which hopefully will lead to my ultimate goal that being appointed as Canadian National Coach and taking Team Canada to the World Cup”
I must admit I thought I was never going to get the role and now I have I’m just happy to be the successful candidate even if Canada don’t make to the 2022 World Cup. After such a long wait I’m considering this “Mission Accomplished” for my story no matter the outcome.
My fist game in charge of Canada was in Montreal where we played our final qualifying game for the World Cup against Jamaica. With both sides having been eliminated already this was all about pride and Gershon Koffie restored some of that with a spectacular 35 yarder mid-way through the second half.
The win would be enough to leap frog Jamaica and avoid coming last in the table.
With a massive 14 point gap between us and winners Mexico there’s a lot of work ahead if we are to be anywhere near that level of competency. The rebuild will start now with some changes for our upcoming friendlies in November.
The final four games of the regular season went pretty much as expected due to injuries and having to play all the games within a week. Nate Murphy got his first ever goal for the club and the winning one too over New York and then of course joined our injury roster immediately afterwards. I was surprised that the lads managed a draw with America considering our fitness but there wasn’t really anything to play for in this game. Striker Richard Hunt finally scored after 10 hours of play to secure a point in our last match away to Philadelphia.
Even though we drew three of our four remaining league games it was still enough to lead the overall MLS Standings and claim the Supporters Shield for the third time in my career having done it back to back with Vancouver in the 2014 and 2015 seasons.
Top spot meant straight into next seasons NACL group phase.
The Play-Offs
Eastern Conference Semi-Final 1st Leg
Having already won the conference with 8 games left we travelled to Texas for the first leg of the semi-final which had matched us up against Dallas and we got off to a great start as an early shot by Richard Hunt was pushed away by the Dallas keeper into the path of the oncoming Harry Kane who blasted the ball home. The lads were playing like they were at BMO Field finding lots of space and confident on the ball, which eventually led to a second goal on the stroke of half time with another powerful effort by Kane picking up a through ball from Gershon Koffie. The second half gave an equally commanding performance but it wasn’t until for final whistle that we added a third with Hunt converting from the spot.
Eastern Conference Semi-Final 2nd Leg
At BMO Field it was Dallas who looked much more like the home side as a lazy first half saw numerous chances for Dallas and they took the lead in the 21st minute with a long ball over the defence that caught everyone out except the Dallas striker. A counter attack led by Verbeck and finished off by opposite winger Jackman fashioned the equalizer just before the interval. We were more aggressive in the second half taking the lead off a free kick headed in by Nordstrand with 7 minutes left. Tactical substitutions to avoid injuries back-fired as we conceded two goals in 2 minutes but we had done enough to reach the conference final.
Eastern Conference Final
A full house of 20,000 saw Harry Kane give us the lead after 19 minutes with a blistering effort off a through ball by young Chilean Guillermo Cerna who would go on to have an outstanding game –dominating the midfield for the full 90 minutes. DC were never really in contention and even though they pulled a goal back after Hunt had put us two up the result was never in doubt with our boisterous fans cheering us on to the final where we will meet Vancouver….naturally!
It was back to international duty and a revamped senior squad did rather well over two friendlies with a win at home over San Marino and a tidy draw in Venezuela.
MLS Cup Final
From about the end of May it was always on the cards for an all Canadian final and sure enough we marched out onto Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Colorado to face Vancouver. Richard Hunt gave us the lead after 23 minutes off a blistering run and cross by Jackman which set the game up nicely for a classic final. But it wasn’t. The game immediately fizzled out disappointing the 18,000 fans on hand though that single goal in the first half meant back to back MLS Cups for Toronto and my seventh in a row.
That win also ensured I overtook Bruce Arena as the all-time top manager in North America.
So that’s it — another MLS title which I’m really suprised about considering all the injuries but on the other hand shows there is depth in this squad.
Now where does this story go from here?
I plan to stay with Toronto at least until our run in current NACL tournament is over as we are in the quarter-finals after which I will resign and focus on the the Canadian national team as that was the overall goal for this story.
Thanks very much for reading this update and I look forward to your comments.
Oliver
15 августа, 2012 at 01:51
Well done on finally getting the Canada job! It’s good to see after all the times they rejected you when you were clearly the best choice. Congrats on winning another cup and on becoming the top manager in MLS history. Can’t wait to see what you can do with Canada now!
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 08:39
Hi Oliver
I was so happy to finally get the Canada job as really that has been the point of this story. Being top manager in MLS is a bonus as I’d nver even thought about it until a media message came in.
saltwater
15 августа, 2012 at 02:06
As soon as you resigned I knew 100% you would meet Vancouver in the MLS Cup final, this is (virtual) football we’re talking about. Well done for getting that win and is that now 7 in a row? Brilliant! Probably the right thing to do to in resigning as the club soon would’ve became a nusance.
It’s about time the Canadian board got their sight back and hired you. This should be a real epic adventure if you can take them to the major tournements. How far do you wish to have gotten come the release of FM13? World Cup semis? Quarters? Finalists? Winners?
Good Luck!
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 08:43
Hi saltwater
Yes; it’s seven MLS Cups in a row and I will do a trophy round up in a post once the NACL is over. As for Canada my goalit is just to get them to a World Cup as they just won’t produce the quality of players to be succesful in that tournamnet.
CsAtlantis
15 августа, 2012 at 05:17
Congratulations Kevin, it’s been 5 years but you finally got the Canadian national team job! My personal recommendation would be that you keep your club job as I find that it makes it much easier to develop your national team players at club level rather than hoping for the AI to do it for you
Good luck for the next season and I wish you luck in the CONCACAF Gold Cup and the next World Cup qualifiers
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 08:47
Hi CsAtlantis
It’s been a long time waiting for the opportunity and now I’ve got it I’m very excited by the prospect.Thanks for the tip about developing players -it’s much appreciated but I’ll pass simply because I want to end this story realistically meaning just being an international coach. Aside from that I’m worried I may not make a World Cup before FM 2013 comes out. It’s already mid-August! :)
David Wiggins
15 августа, 2012 at 06:18
Great stuff yet again Kevin! An impressive season and finally the Canada job! When I was reading this, I did half expect you to go full time with the national team especially now that you are the all time top manager in North America! I think that will be quite fitting what with FM13 just round the corner too
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 08:50
Hi David
Thanks very much!
Being top manager (unexpected) and wanting a realistic end sort of swayed the decison to go full time with Canada once the NACL is over. Also as you point out FM 2013 is not too far away either!
Karl Deighton
15 августа, 2012 at 10:10
Woop!!!! Canadian manager, get in there!
Well done on another MLS title, they may aswell just give you them at the start of the season ;)
Does Toronto roduce any good Canadian youngsters, was just thinking it might be better to stay at the club and improve their junior coaching and youth recruitment network. Which will ultimately improve the national team.
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 10:18
Hi Karl
Thanks very much for leaving a comment. Toronto does produce a good player now and again for examaple David DiPlacido though the board of directors have always been reluctant to invest in youth (at least in the game). I want to finish the story before FM2013 and just being Canadian manager will allow me to do that due to free time available bewtween now and then. Appreciate the tip though :)
vaibhavc
15 августа, 2012 at 10:26
Well done Kevin, another MLS win! You finally managed to get the Canada job, and you have had some good results with them, a 1-1 draw with Venezuela is creditable. And a couple of wins v San Marino and Jamaica.
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 10:44
Thanks vaibhavc
I’m really happy with the start as national coach considering Canada lost 5 in a row beforehand.
Johnny Karp
15 августа, 2012 at 10:45
Yay, finally! The Canadian Football Association finally came to their senses and appointed the best manager on the continent for the job, congratulations mate! Well done on the title as well but that’s not much of a surprise, I knew you were going to win it :P
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 11:03
Thanks Johnny
I’m so happy to finally get the Canada job and being top manager in North America is a real bonus too!!
Darren Smith
15 августа, 2012 at 11:56
A very successful season in every sense Kevin, well done. Plenty more silverware and the Canada job finally lands on your door step, that has been a long time coming. This is the part I’ve been looking forward too so good luck.
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 12:42
Cheers Darren
This is the part I’ve been waiting for as well as basically the Canada job is the whole point of the story. Vancouver — Sydney — Toronto was just a means to an end.
Tegar Triemanudigdo
15 августа, 2012 at 15:19
Well, at last you got yourself as Canadian manager there. Just for quick revision, the Canada aren’t qualify for WC 2018, not 2022. Anyway, Congrats for achieving any trophies there and I’ll look forward on your Canadian story.
Kevin
15 августа, 2012 at 22:01
Hi Tegar
Canada are out of the 2018 World Cup in the qualifying stage. So, where I pick up is re-building for the 2022 tournament.
TheZiggy
16 августа, 2012 at 00:46
Congratulations on taking another MLS Cup, and finally getting the Canada job at long last. It will be interesting to see just how far you can take them. I’ve thought that if I do go for international management, that I would do it without also being a club manager at the same time.
Kevin
16 августа, 2012 at 09:48
Hi Ziggy
Thanks very much nad it’s nice to know we are thinking along the same lines as in real life I can’t hink of anyone who manages both club and country and it’s a nice way to finish off FM2012.
Lye
16 августа, 2012 at 01:51
Hi Kevin,
What a season and a great one! Despite the mounting injuries, your team cope really well and congratulations on the title won. Finally, Canada heard your plea and appointed as their manager. It should be their brightest decision made ever.
Kevin
16 августа, 2012 at 09:49
Hello Lye
I was surprised that we pulled off another MLS title with all those injuries, I guess i have a really strong squad! Just delighted to get that Canada job too!
Gaurav Chaddah
16 августа, 2012 at 17:00
Another easy league win their mate well done! You finally got the Canada job too, happy for you mate and hopefully you can enjoy at least some success with them after you leave the Toronto post.
Kevin
16 августа, 2012 at 17:07
Thanks Gaurav
I was delighted to finally get the Canada role after years of waiting for it. Have you started anew save yet?
Ana Garcia
16 августа, 2012 at 19:26
About time!!
Well done on finally getting the Canada job its long over due after all your success in the MLS will be interesting to see how you get on.
Your are enjoying a domination so far!
Good luck. :)
Kevin
16 августа, 2012 at 23:40
Hi Ana
Yes, I have to agree with you it’s been a long time coming though I have an aging squad with very few talented youngsters to pick from.
hils
22 августа, 2012 at 07:31
You are totally dominating the league!!!!!!!!!!! Well done on getting the Canada job!!!!!!!!!!!