Toronto FC vs. D.C. United: 3 takeaways

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Robin Fraser era at Toronto FC officially kicked off on Saturday night with the end result showing just how much work the new coach still has to do.

A 2-2 draw against D.C. United at Audi Field was a fair result based on the overall balance of play. But it was an uneven performance by TFC who at times demonstrated they still have some bad habits from last season. D.C.'s pressing game caused problems for Fraser's men who were forced to deal with a constant barrage of pressure in order to get to the other side.

"They're a good and very hard team to penetrate," Fraser conceded.

Here are my three major takeaways while watching Saturday's match from the press box at Audi Field.

TFC Tidbits: A night of debuts in MLS season opener

“It’s just a dream come true. I still can’t believe it,” Markus Cimermancic said about making his first appearance for Toronto FC.

TFC REPUBLICJohn Molinaro

Toronto FC show grit, heart in comeback effort on the road

It looked as though TFC was going to be in for a very long night early on in this game as D.C. asserted itself at home with its aggressive press.

Buoyed by the crowd inside Audi Field, the home side vigorously applied pressure on the visitors and took the lead after only eight minutes through Boris Enow. According to TFC stats guru Martyn Bailey, it was the second quickest goal allowed by Toronto in an MLS season opener, trailing only Mason Toye’s third-minute goal for Montreal on April 17, 2021.

A pair of errors by D.C. inside its box allowed TFC to level the score just before the half hour mark courtesy of Jonathan Osorio, before D.C. wrestled control of the game away from the Reds and retook the lead off a Christian Benteke header in the 35th minute.

Down 2-1 on the road – and in a city where they haven't won since 2016 – the Reds' goose looked to be cooked as D.C. had all the momentum.

But Toronto quickly rebounded and carried the bulk of play in the second half with some probing attacks, especially down the right from the combination of Federico Bernardeschi and Richie Laryea. It was Laryea who earned a penalty after being clipped by former Red Brandon Servania while challenging for a ball chipped into the box by Bernardeschi, and the Italian tied things up by converting from the spot in the 70th minute.

And for all the attacking joy that D.C. enjoyed through the opening 45 minutes, they failed to register a single shot on target in the second half, unable to penetrate a Toronto defence that buckled down.

A share of the points on offer wasn't what Fraser wanted, but the Reds displayed some grit and showed they have a backbone by twice coming back from a goal down on the road to earn a valuable and credible draw.

"We started off with a few nervous mistakes, and then I think we grew into the game. ... As confidence grew, our stance changed, and we started to be a little bit more aggressive, and at times we were able to control the game. So, overall, I was really pretty pleased with it," Fraser said in the post-match press conference.

"I think we probably will regret missing some of the chances that we did, but the fact that we're creating the chances is really good."

Two poor goals to concede that came too easy for D.C. 

Some habits are proving to be difficult to kick for Toronto. Last year it had one of the worst defensive records in MLS when it conceded a whopping 60 goals. Too often the Reds were carved open far too easily and gave up soft goals that never should've happened. This was the case yet again on Saturday night at Audi Field. 

In the eighth minute, while trying to play out from the back, wingback Henry Wingo played a poor outlet pass that was picked off by Boris Enow. The Cameroonian made the most of it by slicing between two TFC players and then easily sidestepped Kevin Long inside the penalty area before firing past Sean Johnson to record his first MLS goal. 

The giveaway by Wingo was unforgivable as he was trying to force a pass into a congested area, but his teammates were also at fault for not reacting quickly enough to try to shut down Enow. 

Later in the first half, Lucas Bartlett launched a high ball out from the back that found Jacob Murrell on the right wing. Murrell scampered down that side and took full advantage of rookie Markus Cimermancic not doing enough to close him down by delivering a gorgeous cross to the edge of the six-yard box. The ball went over Long and Christian Benteke connected on a powerful header that sailed past Johnson.   

"The ball was played over my head, and I wasn't able to stop the cross," Cimermancic admitted. 

Fraser admitted that both of D.C.'s goals came a little too easy. 

"I think that it wasn't just the actual goal actions, but some of the losses of possession that led to certain dangerous things are things that we need to certainly address and be a little bit better at," Fraser said. 

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Jonathan Osorio puts in man-of-the-match effort

It was one of TFC's Canadian internationals who shined brightest in the American capital on Saturday night. 

Jonathan Osorio was Toronto's man-of-the-match and kicked off his second campaign wearing the captain's armband by becoming the first player in club history to play and score in 13 MLS seasons.   

In the 28th minute, D.C. goalkeeper Kim Jun-hong, couldn't corral Henry Wingo’s low ball across the box, which led to a botched clearance by teammate Aaron Herrara. Osorio was in the right place at the right time and pounced on the loose ball by slotting it home to draw the Reds level. It was Osorio's 65th career goal in all competitions for Toronto, behind only Sebastian Giovinco (83) and Jozy Altidore (79). 

He nearly added a second goal early in the second half only to see Kim Jun-hong come up with a fabulous save on the Canadian's blank-range effort. 

Osorio ran himself ragged on the night, effortlessly switching between a traditional central midfielder and operating as a false nine. He finished the game with two shots and a 97 per cent passing rate. 

"I've said this before, I don't think there is a person alive who embodies TFC more than Oso. I didn't know [about] that stat, but it's very, very fitting. He bleeds red... It speaks so much about him that he has played 13 seasons, scored in 13 seasons. That means he's been significant for 13 seasons for the club that he grew up loving and loves," Fraser offered. 

(Top photo courtesy of Lucas Kschischang/Toronto FC)

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