TFC Republic Weekly: March 3-9
Searching for its first win under Robin Fraser, Toronto FC plays its third straight road game to open the season this week in Cincinnati.
Welcome to the latest edition of TFC Republic Weekly, an email newsletter that will land in the inbox of both paid subscribers and free members of TFC Republic every Monday.
This newsletter will look at what's in store over the next seven days for Toronto FC, and also get a glimpse of what to expect at TFC Republic in the coming days.
So, without further ado...
Toronto FC suffers 1st defeat under Robin Fraser
Toronto FC is looking for its opening win of the MLS season after suffering a 4-2 road loss vs. Orlando City on Saturday. Sigurd Rosted and Deybi Flores scored in a losing cause for TFC who were coming off a respectable draw away to D.C. United in their MLS season opener.
A decent opening 30 minutes by the Reds was wiped out by a pair of Orlando goals in a two-minute span on its first two shots on target, and Robin Fraser’s men couldn’t fight their way back in the second half. Not playing with a No. 9 meant TFC didn’t have someone to play into in and around Orlando's penalty area, nor did they have a main reference point up top, and the attack sputtered as a result.
"Disappointing, because I felt like our discipline wasn't quite as good as it needed to be … They showed great character, and again, effort. Can't really fault the effort. The effort’s great. I think these guys work hard. They try hard," Fraser said.
“I felt like our discipline against D.C. was quite good, and even for most of the first half [vs. Orlando], I thought it was pretty good. … I felt like, certainly up until the first goal, that while things weren't perfect, we were still in a pretty good spot."
John Molinaro
Injury watch: Richie Laryea
Richie Laryea left Saturday's game in the 22nd minute with a lower-body injury after the wingback went down trying to hit a cross while clashing with an Orlando player. Laryea tried to play on after the initial incident occurred before hobbling off injured. He was replaced by Zane Monlouis.
Laryea was subbed out after only 70 minutes into the 2024 season opener due to an injury and ended up having hamstring surgery that sidelined him for more than three months. He finished the campaign with just one goal and three assists in 17 appearances in all competitions.
The hope is that this injury isn't as serious as the one that sidelined him for so long last year, and that he'll be available for this weekend's match away to FC Cincinnati.
"It happened on the play when he went through, tried to hit the cross and it got blocked out for a corner kick. He took a knock on his leg that ... I think it was in a spot that it's just really awkward and uncomfortable. I don't want to characterize the injury without really knowing what it was, but I think it was one of those really, really awkward, unusual sort of challenges that just led to a difficult situation for him," Robin Fraser said.
John Molinaro
Lorenzo Insigne still not playing
Italian DP Lorenzo Insigne didn't make the trip to Orlando even though he was involved in full training with the rest of the team last week. Insigne's absence meant missed his second game in a row for Toronto. He also wasn't with the team in Washington for the season opener vs. D.C. United.
Multiple sources have told TFC Republic that Insigne is not in the club's plans for this year and that it is trying to move on from him. Whether that means a complete buyout, a mutual contract termination or something else remains to be seen.
Robin Fraser had little to say about Insigne's situation when asked by TFC Republic last week.
"I really can't [provide an update] in terms of the bigger picture question. But for me, it was just about picking the group that we thought would give us the best result on the day. And certainly, the team and the function, or the way the team functioned last week, we were pretty happy with it. I think we've gone with pretty much the same group that we went with last week," Fraser stated.
John Molinaro
Lazar Stefanovic gets contract; Adamn Pearlman loaned out
The Reds made a pair of roster moves last week involving two of their brightest prospects.
Toronto signed Lazar Stefanovic to a first team contract as a homegrown player through 2028 with an option for 2029. TFC also sent fellow defender Adam Pearlman on loan to Halifax Wanderers FC of the Canadian Premier League for the remainder of the 2025 season.
A product of TFC’s youth academy, Stefanovic signed his first professional contract with TFC 2 on June 30, 2023. The next day he made his MLS debut in the Reds’ 1-0 loss to Real Salt Lake at BMO Field. In doing so, Stefanovic became the second-youngest player to appear in a league match for Toronto (16 years, 10 months and 22 days). In total, Stefanovic made 31 appearances (29 starts) for TFC 2 in MLS NEXT Pro over the last two years.
Pearlman, 19, signed with Toronto FC last February to become the 33rd player in team history to graduate from the youth academy to the senior side. But the Canadian defender didn't make a single appearance for the club last year. Instead, he was loaned out to TFC 2 and played in 24 games (23 starts) totalling 1,989 minutes in MLS NEXT Pro.
John Molinaro
TFC vs. FC Cincinnati on Saturday
Toronto FC plays its third consecutive (and final) road game to start the regular season when it faces FC Cincinnati at TQL Stadium on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET/TSN & Apple TV).
Cincinnati opened its campaign with a 1-0 home win over the New York Red Bulls on Feb. 22, last season's MLS Cup finalists, before suffering a humbling 4-1 loss away to the Philadelphia Union last weekend. It was an off night for Cincinnati, who laboured on both sides of the ball and didn't register a shot on target until the second half on a very windy night at Subaru Park.
"We just weren't good. I thought the first half overall, despite some difficult conditions, we weren't terrible. We just rushed too many plays when we had the ball, when we were able to break pressure, and then didn't get any rhythm in the final third," coach Pat Noonan said.
"And then in the second half, obviously it becomes a little difficult when you concede the third goal and at that point, get some fresh legs on there and hope for a good end. But yeah, it just was a poor night."
Prior to this weekend's match vs TFC, Cincinnati will host Mexican club Tigres UANL on Tuesday in the first leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup round of 16 series.
Cincinnati leads the all-time regular season series against Toronto with seven wins (one draw) in 12 meetings. The Orange and Blue have won seven of the last nine games against the Reds with just one loss. Cincinnati earned a 4-3 road win on May 25, 2024 in the previous match between the two sides.
These teams will meet again on May 14 at BMO Field.
Note: I will be at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati to cover Saturday's game, so be sure to visit TFC Republic all weekend in order to check out our special on-site coverage.
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Stories to look out for at TFC Republic
Now in his third full season with Toronto FC, Alonso Coello has set some pretty big goals for himself in 2025. And TFC coach Robin Fraser has some big expectations of the 25-year-old midfielder from Madrid. Look for my feature story in the coming days.
Other stories that will be published later this week include:
- A TFC notebook column after Tuesday or Wednesday's training session.
- An MLS rules explainer on the U22 player model and how it applies to Toronto FC this season.
- In-depth pre- and post-game coverage of Toronto's match vs. FC Cincinnati.
- My special video report from Cincinnati ahead of the match.
- A new audio interview piece with Laurel Pfahler of Queen City Press ahead of Saturday's road game vs. Cincinnati.
- The return of the TFC Random Thoughts column.
- A new TFC Talk interview with beat reporter James Grossi.
- Regular "TFC Tidbits" stories throughout the week.
- An MLS NEXT Pro season preview for TFC 2.
- And much more!
TFC Republic mailbag
TFC Republic will feature a regular reader mailbag column where I answer questions from subscribers about Toronto FC and Canadian soccer in general.
I'll answer the best questions submitted to me by TFC Republic readers, so feel free to drop me an email at jmo1897@gmail.com. You can also reach out to me via Twitter.
(Top photo courtesy of Toronto FC)
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