TFC Republic Weekly: November 25-December 1
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 offer a glimpse of what to expect at TFC Republic in the coming days.
So, without further ado...
TFC's decision over Prince Owusu due this week
The overall picture regarding Toronto FC's roster for the 2025 season will come a little bit more into focus in the coming days, as all MLS clubs must decide on players' contract options for next year by Wednesday's league deadline.
TFC decided on 11 such players in October when they exercised the options of goalkeeper Luka Gavran; defenders Kobe Franklin and Kevin Long; midfielders Alonso Coello and Kosi Thompson; and forwards Deandre Kerr and Tyrese Spicer.
At the same time, the Reds didn't pick up the options of goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh, defenders Aimé Mabika and Shane O'Neill; and midfielder Brandon Servania. When last month's announcement was made, GM Jason Hernandez said that conversations were ongoing with some of those players about possibly being re-signed to new deals ahead of the 2025 campaign.
But the club still has to make a decision about forward Prince Owusu and defender Luke Singh, who spent this year on loan with Atlético Ottawa in the CPL.
While the expectation is that Singh won't be brought back, the future of Owusu (who earned $807,500 US in 2024) could go either way. The fact that Toronto is waiting until the Nov. 27 deadline suggests that it could be trying to move him via a trade or a transfer deal. TFC could also re-sign the German to a new contract that would see him earn less money than he did this season when he was the fifth-highest paid player on the team. Owusu finished as the team’s top scorer in 2024 with 12 goals in all competitions, and nine in MLS.
"Being a salary cap league, we have to protect our different interests as far as what we're trying to do moving forward. At the same time, for someone like Prince, you have to acknowledge that he spent a short spell with us of about 18 months. And on his end, he'll have some certain things that are important to him, one of those will be security. So, contract term. And understanding how all these things come together and where they fit potentially for us in 2025 and moving forward, is a little bit of the discussions behind the scenes," Hernandez said last month.
Important off-season dates to remember
With TFC coming off a disappointing campaign, this off-season is going to be one of the most important in the team's history. Club management will have to make a series of moves in order to improve the roster and set things right for the 2025 MLS campaign. With this in mind, here are some important off-season dates to circle on your calendar.
Nov. 27 is the deadline for all MLS clubs to decide which players will have their contract options exercised for the 2025 season. TFC already made decisions on 11 players, but they still have to decide what they want to do about forward Prince Owusu and defender Luke Singh, who spent this season on loan with Atlético Ottawa in the CPL.
Dec. 9 is when the MLS half-day trade window (9:00 am to 1:00 p.m. ET) opens up after a three-month freeze. MLS clubs can start tweaking their rosters by making trades with other teams across the league.
Expansion club San Diego FC will become the 30th team in MLS in 2025. But before that, San Diego will get to pick up to five players during the MLS Expansion Draft on Dec. 11. TFC have to determine which players to protect and which ones to leave unprotected.
MLS free agency begins on Dec. 12. Free agency eligible players are out-of-contract and option-declined players who are at least 24 years old and who have completed a minimum of five years of service in MLS. On the same day, the end-of-year waivers process begins. The waiver process pertains to players whose options were not exercised and who are not eligible for free agency or the re-entry process.
The MLS re-entry process kicks off on Dec. 13 with stage 1, while stage 2 is on Dec. 19. Essentially, this applies to MLS players who are out of contract (or had their option declined) but are not eligible for free agency.
The 2025 MLS SuperDraft on Dec. 20 will consist of three rounds.
CanWNT vs. Iceland on Friday
The Canadian women's team returns to action when it faces Iceland on Friday (1:00 p.m. ET/OneSoccer) in the first of two international friendlies at Pinatar Arena in Murcia, Spain. Canada will also play South Korea on Dec. 3 (noon ET/OneSoccer).
This week's match will be Canada's first since Canada Soccer shared the findings earlier this month of an independent report it commissioned into the Olympic drone-spying scandal while also announcing that Bev Priestman would not be back as the team’s head coach. Priestman, assistant coach Jasmine Mander and analyst Joey Lombardi are currently serving a one-year suspension from FIFA, with Lombardi having already resigned his position with Canada Soccer. Cindy Tye, coach of Canada's under-20 team, will serve as interim head coach of the senior team for its last two games of the year.
The most recognizable names on Canada’s latest squad are captain Jessie Fleming, goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan, defenders Vanessa Gilles and Ashley Lawrence, midfielder Julia Grosso, and forwards Janine Beckie and Adriana Leon.
New faces in the team include defender Janet Okeke from North Carolina State University and forward Nyah Rose from Southern Methodist University, both members of Canada’s under-20 team, have earned their first call ups to the senior side. Midfielder Jeneva Hernandez Gray (Vancouver Whitecaps) and defender Megan Reid (Angel City) have earned their second call ups and will be looking to earn their first international caps.
Forward Cloé Lacasse and defender Kadeisha Buchanan both recently suffered serious knee injuries that are expected to sideline them for several months, if not longer. Defender Sydney Collins and Jade Rose, and midfielder Quinn are also dealing with injuries at the moment, while forward Jordyn Huitema was unavailable for selection this month due to personal reasons.
Canada is No. 6 in the current FIFA world rankings, seven spots above Iceland. The Canadian women’s team has faced Iceland two times since 2016 with their most recent matchup at the 2019 Algarve Cup ending in a 0-0 draw. Before that, Canada earned a 1-0 victory over Iceland in 2016.
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Stories to look out for at TFC Republic
We'll have a full recap and analysis of Toronto FC's roster decisions over German forward Prince Owusu and Trinidad and Tobago international Luke Singh. Look for the club to make an official announcement in the coming days.
Other stories that will be published later this week include:
- My “Random Thoughts on TFC” column.
- Regular "TFC Tidbits" stories throughout the week.
- A new TFC Talk audio interview segment with beat reporter James Grossi.
- The final part of our "Toronto FC in 2024: Who was worth their salary cap hit" series.
- The final part of our "Toronto FC in 2024: The year that was in roster moves" series.
- Part 6 of our "TFC year in review" series looks back at the month of July.
- A new instalment in our TFC flashback history series.
- Another edition of the reader mailbag.
- In-depth pre- and post-game coverage of Canada's friendly vs. Iceland.
- And much more!
TFC Republic mailbag
TFC Republic features 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 Lucas Kschischang/Toronto FC)
TFC Republic has a comments section! At the very bottom of every story, there is a feature where you can post your comments, so be sure to share your thoughts and views.