On Tuesday in Honduras Toronto FC will face Club Deportivo Motagua in a match that will be looked upon as one of those watershed moments when the full 90 is complete.
The last time the team lined up with something at stake was in New York City last October, and a monsoon of pathetic fallacy proportions washed away the playoff hopes of the club in a five-goal laugher.
In that season-ending loss the Reds held its own fate; the same goes for Tuesday. Holding a 1-0 edge in the two-leg playoff, the club must protect the one-goal advantage or better yet, score an away goal.
If the two teams are tied on aggregate at the end of 90 minutes the first tiebreaker is away goals. Motagua failed to score in Toronto last week, so a goal by the Reds in Tegucigalpa would mean the Hondurans would have to win the match by two goals in order to advance.
But if an away goal fails to materialize and the home club manages to match the first-leg score line of 1-0, the next tiebreaker is 30 minutes of extra time. If there’s still no winner at that point, the drama of penalties will settle it.
If the Reds win: A win means that for the fourth consecutive season the club will register a modicum of improvement. By qualifying for the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League, the Reds will have completed the third step of a three year process. Step 1 was winning the Nutrilite Canadian Championship; Step 2 was defending it and Step 3 will be playing in the tournament proper.
If the Reds lose: Rioting. Just kidding (sort of). A 1-0 loss to Kansas City in its last regular season game dropped Toronto out of playoff positioning based on goal differential. Not a big deal, but with just three wins in the last 10 games the club appears to be treading water at a dangerous point of the season.
The disappointment of failing to finish off its edge in aggregate against a team perceived to be of a lesser quality, despite fielding five World Cup players, will not do much for confidence. Four of the next five matches come against MLS teams already in the Top 8 playoff positions; including what will be a fiery home-and-home against the aforementioned (yet re-built) New York team that ended ’09 badly for the Reds.
The intangibles: There are several: Climate, inhospitable crowds and the fear of the world’s most dangerous airport. The team has landed and is presumably resting in a reputable Honduran inn, but seriously, that landing is enough to have any player thinking about never having to come back.
UPDATE (1:16 pm/ET): Instead of attempting Tegucigalpa, the pilot flew to San Pedro Sula after deeming that airport safer for landing, and the players were then loaded onto a bus for the winding five-hour drive to the Honduran capital.
Team officials said the squad would also depart from San Pedro Sula.
The final intangible is the theatrics practiced to perfection by the Central American club. Toronto is very susceptible to the penalty kick with three surrendered, and is among the league-leaders in fouls committed and cards handed out.
“No contact whatsoever,” said Adrian Cann, one of the Reds most physical defenders. “Sometimes they go down with no contact at all.”
Buckle up.