TORONTO—The memory of what happened in the semi-finals of last year’s Amway Canadian Championship still burns Jay Chapman.
After losing the first leg 1–0 in Montreal, Toronto FC rebounded with a 3–2 win in the return match at BMO Field. It wasn’t enough for the Reds, though, as they bowed out of the competition on the away-goals rule after former TFC player Dominic Oduro scored in the 84th minute for the Impact in the second leg.
Chapman, a 22-year-old midfielder from Brampton, played only 16 minutes over the two matches, but the Reds’ early exit from the competition left a bad taste in his mouth. Now it’s time for a bit of redemption, for both TFC and Chapman, when Toronto hosts Montreal on Wednesday in the first leg of this year’s semi-final series.
“There’s a lot of bad blood there—not just with what happened last year but there’s been a really big rivalry,” Chapman said. “[We] Canadian boys always want to prove against their Canadian talent we are the superior team.”
Fellow midfielder Jonathan Osorio, another Canadian on TFC’s roster, is also eager to even things up with the Impact.
“Montreal is our biggest rival. They say Columbus is a [big] rival, and it is, but Montreal for sure is the [biggest] one,” Osorio offered.
Aside from hoisting the Voyageurs Cup, the tournament winner will qualify for the group stage of the 2017–18 CONCACAF Champions League as Canada’s lone representative at the continental competition.
That extra incentive isn’t lost on coach Greg Vanney, who called this Canadian tournament “an important event for the club.”
“We want to try to position ourselves to get into international soccer and play in CONCACAF, so we value this event,” Vanney said.
That being said, you shouldn’t expect Vanney to field a full-strength side on Wednesday. Instead, look for him to use some regular starters, but also give chances to guys who’ve been on the fringes of the first team or seen limited minutes this season.
Vanney also hinted that he would use players from TFC 2, Toronto FC’s farm team that competes in the third-tier USL, over the course of this two-legged semifinal. And with the club dealing with a few injury problems, Vanney explained he won’t rush anybody back unless they’re fully fit.
“We’re planning accordingly, but also we understand the risk of certain guys and not pushing guys who are not going to be ready to go,” Vanney cautioned.
TFC had six Canadian players on the field at one point during a 3–0 loss away to the New York Red Bulls on Saturday: Osorio, Chapman, Mo Babouli, Jordan Hamilton, Ashtone Morgan and Will Johnson.
“It’s nice. It’s good to see that. It just shows that the young Canadians in this group are growing,” Osorio said.
Only afterwards did Vanney realize the game had that much Canadian content.
“It’s great that we’re at that point where we have Canadian players that we trust enough to put out there and compete in what was a tough environment in New York,” Vanney said.
But Vanney admitted he doesn’t feel obligated to start Canadian players in this Canadian tournament—that every player, regardless of nationality, will have to earn their spot on the pitch over the two legs.
Toronto will be missing designated players Michael Bradley (away with the U.S. national team) and Jozy Altidore (hamstring injury), as well as Canadian midfielder Will Johnson (international duty).
Also, star forward Sebastian Giovinco is questionable with an abductor injury. Japanese rookie Tsubasa Endoh is also dealing with a leg injury and could be ruled out Wednesday, while defender Drew Moor might miss the game after his wife gave birth to their first child on Tuesday morning.
Some good news for Toronto is that Benoit Cheyrou is back fit and available for selection. The Frenchman is expected to see action for the first time after being sidelined with a quad strain in early April. Cheyrou was on the bench in New York, but did not play.
NOTES: Montreal hosts Toronto in the second leg next Wednesday… The winner of this semi-final faces the winner of the Vancouver Whitecaps-Ottawa Fury series. The two-legged final will be played during the weeks of June 21 and June 28… Each semi-final is a two-game aggregate series with the away-goals rule in effect… Last year, Vancouver knocked off Montreal in the final to win their first Voyageurs Cup… The cup itself was originally funded and awarded by the Voyageurs, a Canadian soccer supporters group founded in 1996. Since 2008, the Canadian Soccer Association has presented the Voyageurs Cup to the tournament champion.
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