Random thoughts on TFC: Will Herdman have to follow through on his challenge?

Some random thoughts I had on Toronto FC ahead of Saturday's home game against Austin FC (7:30 p.m. ET/Apple TV & TSN).

Major lineup changes could happen on Saturday

Frustrated after a complacent performance, coach John Herdman let his feelings be known in the aftermath of a 3-1 home loss to D.C. United on Aug. 31, TFC's final match before the recent international break.

"From a training perspective, it will be again for two weeks back to basics to allow those intense sessions to allow people to compete for places," Herdman said in the post-game press conference.

It was a stern warning from Herdman that nobody is safe with the team fighting to nail down a playoff berth. Nobody has a starting spot locked down. Nobody is a guaranteed starter. Playing time and opportunities will be earned and not given out based on reputations and track records. 

With this in mind, it'll be interesting to see what kind of lineup changes, if any, he makes on Saturday against Austin. TFC Republic spoke to Deandre Kerr and Derrick Etienne Jr. this week and both said that the players have taken Herdman's strong message to heart. But whether or not that'll be enough to convince Herdman to stay the course with the cast of regular starters remains to be seen.

If Herdman is still considering making major changes, the most likely candidates would have to be Lorenzo Insigne, Prince Owusu and Deybi Flores. Owusu and Insigne are not producing on the offensive end like they should be. Herdman previously noted that he expects more from Insigne down the final stretch, while Owusu has just one goal in his last 12 MLS appearances. Flores' form has been inconsistent in recent weeks.

And if Herdman really wanted to make a bold gesture, he could do worse than drafting in Kerr and Kosi Thompson to replace Owusu and Flores. Kerr has struggled through injuries this season but that appears to be in the past, and the young Canadian is eager and hungry for a chance. Thompson has looked solid during the summer and has even started ahead of Flores at times. Relying on the veterans has produced mixed results this season. It might be time to give youth a chance.

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Will TFC 2's Julian Altobelli graduate to the first team? 

In case you haven't been paying close attention, TFC 2 midfielder Julian Altobelli is having himself quite the season in MLS NEXT Pro. 

Altobelli, a native of Toronto, leads the Young Reds in scoring in 2024 with nine goals in 21 appearances (18 starts) while adding two assists. His nine goals are a club record for the most by one player in a single season. Three of his goals have been from open play, three from free kicks and three from the penalty spot. 

On Wednesday night, the TFC 2 captain converted another penalty in the team's road win over New York City FC II. He has now scored in seven consecutive matches for TFC 2, eclipsing a club mark set by Jordan Hamilton in 2018.  

Altobelli has appeared in more matches (92) than any other player in franchise history and is tied with Jordan Perruzza (20 goals) as the club's all-time top scorer. But at age 21, he's beginning to age out and reach the point where players need to move on from MLS NEXT Pro, especially at TFC 2 where coach Gianni Cimini gives a lot of playing time and opportunities to youth academy products. 

All of which raise the question: Will GM Jason Hernandez call him up to the first team? Each year, Toronto FC signs at least one player from the Young Reds, and at the moment Altobelli is one of the top candidates. 

Such a move is highly unlikely this year as the MLS roster freeze date is Friday, so if the Reds were going to sign Altobelli to a homegrown player contract it would have to get completed by then. But you'd have to think that he will at least receive an invite to training camp ahead of the 2025 regular season where he'll get a chance to earn a contract with the senior team.  

James Grossi is the foremost authority on TFC 2, having covered the team in an in-depth fashion for several years. He feels Altobelli has taken some big strides this year and "become the driving force behind TFC 2's attack."

"In each of his three seasons in MLS NEXT Pro, Altobelli has been a factor, but he has had to take a backseat to others. He wasn’t starting every game. He was used off the bench as a finisher. Gianni Cimini said at the beginning of the year that he came in with a renewed attitude, a focus on wanting to be the guy for the side, a leader, and that has shone through in good times and bad in 2024," Grossi told TFC Republic.

"Breaking through, not just to the first team, but with TFC 2 itself, in the forward positions is tough. For the last three seasons, Altobelli has seen guys like Hugo Mbongue and Jordan Perruzza often parachute in from the first team to take up minutes. There will always be draft picks – Paul Rothrock, Charlie Sharp, Reshaun Walkes – or external recruits – Jesus Batiz, Hassan Ayari – that compete for those chances on the pitch. So, to keep one’s head down, not get discouraged, keep battling, and keep making the most of those opportunities is admirable. 

"Altobelli has done everything he can to put his name into the conversation of being a guy that can move up to the first team, be an option off the bench, an understudy to a starter at that level, and make things happen when he gets those minutes. [But] there are so many factors that go into those decisions and the jump from NEXT Pro to MLS is huge." 

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Matt Hedges at TFC and what might've been

Saturday's match marks Matt Hedges' return to BMO Field for the first time since being traded by TFC to Austin FC last summer.

Hedges became a free agent following the 2022 MLS season after spending his entire career up to that point with FC Dallas. Toronto beat out several other interested teams and signed Hedges to a two-year contract, with options through 2026, using targeted allocation money (TAM), ahead of the 2023 campaign.

But he only stayed for six months. Shortly after taking over from Bob Bradley last summer, new GM Jason Hernandez had a conversation with the veteran defender.

"[He] said he appreciated all the work we put in to get him as a free agent, and that he, his wife and family moved up here to make an honest go of it. But for family reasons, his wife and kids were having a difficult time assimilating and adjusting and being so far from home. So, Matt said if there’s any opportunity for him to get back to the U.S., he asked if we could explore that on his behalf. I told him straight up I appreciated him coming to me, I respected him for doing it and that I would do my best," Hernandez recalled in an interview with TFC Republic.

When Toronto signed Hedges, the hope was that he would help shore up the back line after it conceded a franchise-high 66 goals in each of the previous two MLS seasons. The Reds were also counting on Hedges to have the same transformative effect as former centre back Drew Moor did when he signed with Toronto as a free agent prior to the 2016 season.

It's fair to say things didn't quite work out that way. Hedges looked pretty solid in his 14 MLS appearances (13 as a starter) for Toronto. But he dealt with a number of injury issues and struggled to remain fit throughout the season. He also never quite felt completely settled at TFC, which played a part in him asking to be traded.

Now he's coming back to Toronto to face his former club for the first time and you can't help but think what could've been. Could he have become the next Drew Moor had he avoided injuries and fully settled here? We'll never know.

(Top photo courtesy of Lucas Kschischang/Toronto FC)

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