TFC Republic Weekly: April 7-13

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 earns valuable road point in Miami

Toronto FC put forth its best effort of the season and overcame a fabulous goal from Lionel Messi to earn a credible 1-1 draw vs. Inter Miami at Chase Stadium on Sunday.

Federico Bernardeschi scored in a man-of-the-match effort TFC, who also received quality contributions in attack from Lorenzo Insigne and Theo Corbeanu. 

This latest result for Toronto (0-4-3) means it’s one of only three winless teams in MLS. The Reds have yet to record a win under new coach Robin Fraser with their previous victory coming last September when John Herdman was still in charge.    

But Toronto can take great pride in collecting a valuable road point against Miami (4-0-2), who alongside the Columbus Crew remains the only unbeaten club in MLS this season. Now let's see if TFC are able to build off this solid performance and start collecting wins. 

"A ton of credit for the commitment that we showed tonight. We talked about being engaged; we talked about the fact that moments have hurt us [in previous games]. And I felt like tonight, again, the engagement was really, really good. We certainly made it difficult [for Miami], throwing our bodies in front of things," Fraser told reporters after the game. 

"It felt like a group that was really committed to winning. So really proud of the effort. Certainly, we were pleased with the way the game went. A little bit disappointed [in that] we thought maybe we could have done more with some of the chances. But then again, they could have as well." 

TFC adds Swiss midfielder Maxime Dominguez on loan

Toronto FC bolstered its midfield last week when it added Swiss midfielder Maxime Dominguez on loan from Brazilian club Vasco da Gama through the end of the year. The deal includes a purchase option for TFC at the conclusion of the loan. 

Dominguez made his MLS debut when he came on in the 73rd minute vs. Miami on Sunday.

"What he showed was good determination. He's quick, he's agile defensively, he's quick to get to things offensively. He's got a really nice first touch and good ideas for him to be thrown into a hectic game like that," Robin Fraser said.

Dominguez, 29, came up through the youth system at Servette FC before making his senior team debut for the Swiss club in 2013. He went on to play for three other outfits in his native Switzerland – FC Zurich, Lausanne-Sport and Neuchâtel Xamax – with his best season coming in 2018-19 when he scored seven league goals for Lausanne.  

He moved to Poland in 2021 and enjoyed some success with Miedź Legnica over two seasons and then moved on to Raków Częstochowa where he barely played during the 2023-24 campaign. A transfer move to Portugal revitalized his club career as the Swiss midfielder distinguished himself across two seasons with Gil Vicente FC – he had six goals in league play in 2023-24.  

It wouldn't be long before he was on the move again, this time joining Brazilian club Vasco da Gama in 2024. Opportunities were few and far between for Dominguez in Brazil because his path to the starting 11 was blocked by Philippe Coutinho and Dimitri Payet. He had just one goal in 14 appearances for the club.  

“I wanted to play more [at Vasco]. We had a lot of quality in this team, with a lot of top players in my position, so it was not so easy to play…  When [Vasco’s sporting director] came to me and told me that Toronto called him for the move, I told him directly that I was interested because I'm not happy with my situation,” Dominguez said.  

Richie Laryea out 4-6 weeks with hamstring injury

Robin Fraser revealed last Friday that Richie Laryea is expected to be out for approximately another four to six weeks.

Laryea returned to Toronto after recently travelling to the United Kingdom where he consulted with a specialist in hopes of getting to the bottom of an injury that has forced him to miss the Reds’ last five matches.  

Fraser didn’t have many details about the diagnosis, but he did say Laryea won’t require surgery. TFC's coach had previously described Laryea's injury as “medium-term.”

Laryea, 30, was subbed out in the 22nd minute of Toronto's second match of the campaign, a 4-2 road loss to Orlando City on March 1. He hasn’t played since, and the injury prevented him from representing Canada at last month’s Concacaf Nations League finals in Los Angeles.  

"When you're an athlete, you can get injured, you can get really, really bummed out and depressed, or you can realize that this is part of it. And we all probably go through a little of both. When the initial injury happens, you're devastated, depending on how long you think it might be, but then at the end of the day, it is what it is, and we all go through it,” Fraser said. 

TFC vs. Minnesota United on Sunday  

Toronto FC returns to action when it hosts Minnesota United on Saturday (2:30 p.m. ET/Apple TV).     

Minnesota (4-1-2) sits in third place in the Western Conference and is coming off a 2-1 road win over New York City FC on Sunday. Canadian Tani Oluwaseyi and Will Trapp scored in the win for the visitors. 

“We would obviously have liked to have seen the game out with a little bit more authority — the authority that I think that the first half suggested that we might have in the second half,” Eric Ramsay told reporters. “It’s a huge three points on the road, and I would say that shouldn’t be underestimated.” 

The Loons started the season with road loss vs. LAFC but are unbeaten in their six games since which includes a pair of back-to-back wins. 

Toronto leads the all-time series against Minnesota with two wins (and a loss) in four regular season games. 

This will be the only meeting of the season between the two teams. 

CanWNT vs. Argentina on Tuesday

The Canadian women's team wraps up its two-game friendly series vs. Argentina when it hosts the South Americans on Tuesday at Starlight Stadium in Langford, B.C. (10:30 p.m. ET/OneSoccer).  

Canada put in a dominant performance in earning a 3-0 victory over Argentina at Vancouver’s BC Place last Friday courtesy of goals from Jade Rose, Nichelle Prince and Julia Grosso.

The game was Canada’s first on home soil under Casey Stoney, who was appointed as the new coach in January, and the team’s first home match since battling to a 1-1 draw against Mexico at BMO Field last June.   

Canada is No. 7 in the current FIFA world rankings, 26 spots above Argentina, and it showed right from the opening kickoff. Stoney’s side dominated the proceedings and carried the overwhelming majority of play, forcing Argentina on its heels thanks to its patient possession play. In particular, Adriana Leon and Janine Sonis tormented the South Americans with their dynamic attacking forays, while Emma Regan expertly helped the Canadians win the midfield battle.  

"I thought [Argentina] would be more physical, to be honest, but I actually was really pleased we put our physicality into the game. We stopped them from playing," Stoney said.

Canada has won all seven of its previous contests against Argentina by a combined score of 17-1.

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Stories to look out for at TFC Republic 

Fresh off scoring his first goal for Canada at the Concacaf Nations League, Tani Oluwaseyi will make his debut at BMO Field this weekend when Minnesota United faces Toronto FC. Oluwaseyi is off to a great start this season in MLS with five goals and two assists in six appearances, and he's riding a four-game scoring streak at the moment. I'm scheduled to interview Oluwaseyi this week ahead of his visit to Toronto. 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. 
• In-depth pre- and post-game coverage of Toronto's match vs. Minnesota United.  
• A new audio interview piece with Jon Marthaler of The Minnesota Star Tribune ahead of Saturday's game vs. Minnesota.  
• A new TFC Random Thoughts column. 
• A new TFC Talk interview with beat reporter James Grossi.     
• Regular "TFC Tidbits" stories throughout the week.   
• A piece on Hugo Mbongue's recent loan move to the USL Championship.
• The weekly TFC 2 report. 
• The return of the reader mailbag!
• Post-game coverage of Canada's match vs. Argentina.
• 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 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.